Another's Journey
by REDSTORMAR555
Summary: When Kayaba trapped 10,000 people in SAO, many players rose to the challenge of finishing the game. This story is of one of those few. One who would have a larger impact on the game than they thought possible, and touch many lives in the process. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**I've just rewatched Sword Art Online, and read a few fanfics, so I decided I wanted to write one of my own.**

 **Before I go any further, I'll clarify that I am using info from the anime, manga, and light novel, so things may be different from what you know if you've only watch one or only read one or the other. That and I'm changing a few other things.**

 **On another note, I'm also changing other things that aren't because I can. I'll be mixing other possible game mechanics into the story if they fit. So not everything might be the same.**

 **Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

NerveGear.

Quite possibly one of the most advanced pieces of technology man had ever made in the twentieth century to date.

And he uses it for video games...

Seems legit.

"You're not letting your sister play with you?"

"Mom, I don't have a second headset. Besides, those things are expensive. And even then, I doubt they have anymore after the sales today."

Mom shook her head as she set a dish down. "We should have bought another. You know how much Stephane loves to play video games with you."

"Sorry mom." I say as I hand her the last washed dish, which she places in the covers.

"We'll buy one later. You know how much she'll hassle you because of that." My mom drys her hands on a towel.

"I know, I know. She's already hounding me as it is. You remember how she was during the beta." I raise an eyebrow.

Mom rolls her eyes. "She was practically on top of you the entire time. And she was always angry."

"She'll have to stay angry for a little while longer than. Ah, I'll make it up to her." I turn on my heel as I exit the kitchen. "I'm going to play now."

"Eight o'clock!" She shouts as I reach the stairs.

"Okay!"

I jog quickly up the stairs, skipping a step with each, well, step, and am on the second floor in no time. Though as I reached the top step, a small body blocked my path.

"Steph..." I already knew what my eight year old sister was going to bug me about the game.

"You should'a got another controller." She sent a glare my way.

"It's not a controller, it's a headset. And I've said I'm sorry. We'll get you one tomorrow before lunch okay? I'll take you with too."

My little sister looks at me, than closes her eyes. "Okay... I still want to play now."

"I know Steph. I'll make it up to you. I'll give you the strongest weapon I have when you play."

"Really?"

"Sure." I let her head. "Wake me up as early as you want tomorrow and we'll get the headset. Than we can play as much as we want."

"Okay!" She seems excited after telling her I'd hand over my sword. She steps aside to let me pass before heading downstairs herself. Probably to get something to eat.

I jog to my room, passing my two dogs on the way. They immidiatly jog after me.

"Hey doggies. I know you're excited to see me, but I need to get in SAO. I'm suppose to meet a friend in there, and I'm almost late."

I finish downloading the disk into the NerveGear quickly, then place the headset into my head before laying on my bed. Both my dogs follow me onto the bed, both laying down on top of me.

"Really Bella? Misty? You choose now to sleep on me?"

Bella, a German Shepherd/ Boxer mix, simply glanced at me before returning to her original position, sprawled out, her back against the right side of my body. Misty, my short haired chiwawa, did not move whatsoever, still curled into a ball on my stomach.

"Crazy dogs." I smiled. I took a quick look at the clock, just in time to see 12:59 turn to 1:00.

"Here we go." I close my eyes. "Link start!"

Like the other times I've used this, my world turns white for a brief moment before many colors rushed into my vision and icons began to appear as the NerveGear ran a routine self-check. Small blue gears appeared and the diagnostic test for my regular five senses began.

Touch – Ok

Sight – Ok

Hearing – Ok

Taste – OK

Smell – Ok

The symbols spun and turned green for each test before sweeping to the side. They dispersed after the test was completed and I was met by the login screen. I put in my username and password and proceeded to one more option.

"Use previous beta data? Of course."

The last screen with the words _'Welcome to Sword Art Online!'_ appears before me. The last of the blue-green gears vanished and my vision cleared. I noticed that I was in a brand new area. This place actually had color. In front of me was a ring structure made of stone. It curved around and reminded me of the Roman Coliseum. The only difference was the gigantic metallic castle that sat on the edge of the ring.

"Just make sure everything's okay." I say to myself as I do some basic stretches, making sure that the NerveGear is functioning properly. Would be bad if my arm or a leg didn't want to respond. But everything is fine.

All around me other players begin to appear, and you can see their excitement. Hell, you can feel it in the air, or data, as it were. Some wandered off at once, while others waited for friends, or were already meeting them. You could hear shouting, laughter, excited chatter, things you'd hear in any city.

"Yo, Andrew!"

This guy? The one who said my name? His name's Alex. One of my closest friends, he moved into Tokyo a few years after I did. Two American boys who didn't speak Japanese fluently, and you have the makings of a friend.

"You look ridiculous." I say.

He really did. He looks like an exact opposite of what he was. His brown hair was blond, and it stood on end in a way that I could say he went super saiyan. He was taller then I was by a good foot, and his body was that of a body builder. If I didn't know any better, I'd mistaken him for a dragon ball Z character.

"You didn't change your avatar?" He asked, pointing at my body.

"Didn't see a need to."

I had made everything on my avatar match me exactly. My height, my short black hair, soft chocolate brown eyes, slightly tanned skin a sharp nose, and lean body.

Really, I like the way I look. It's _me_.

"So what's your first impression?" I ask as I wave my hand dramatically.

"What do you think? This is awesome! We're in a game! But it feels like the real thing!" I laugh at his enthusiasm.

"Don't get too excited now. We don't need you trying to fight the floor boss today now."

"You're just worried that I'll beat it easy."

"Right. Right."

"So, does my best friend the beta know of any good hunting grounds?" I put a finger to my lips, while giving a slight frown.

"Now so loud now. Before we do any of that, you need a kit. Don't want to fight beasts with your bare hands."

"Wait, kit?"

"Greetings!"

We both turn to our left to see a blonde haired woman dressed in a blue dress. She smiled and said, "Welcome to Sword Art Online!"

"Who the heck are you?" Alex raises an eyebrow.

"Calm down, she's just an AI."

"You are part of the 10,000 players who are logging into the first ever game that places you and your senses inside a virtual environment! You have now spawned on floor one – Town of Beginnings!" The blond AI stated happily. "Please choose one of the following item kits. But please be aware – Magic is not available in this game. Here are your choices."

"Go ahead man, pick first." I motion to the box that appears before him. He gives me a blank look, then moves towards the AI and scrolls through the list. He finds what he's looking for quickly, since he knew what he was going for when he got in here.

"Oh wow. That's handy." He comments after he finishes the trade. "Your turn Andrew."

"Come on, it's rude to call me by my real name in here. Do you want everyone to know that you're Alex Johnson?" I say his real name a little louder than necessary as I scroll through the list.

"Stop being an ass, Alto." He growls.

"See? Was that so hard Alexander?" I lift my eyebrow and smirk, choosing my kit. Another box opened and the option "trade" was available, with "Alice (NPC)" below it. A green arrow pointed to the items that belong in the starter kit. The items were as follows:

 _Iron Straight Sword_

 _Health Potion x 4_

 _Teleport Crystal x 1_

"Okay Alexander. Equip your weapon and follow me. We can get ahead a little if we start beating monsters." The iron sword materializes in a scabbard on my back. Alexander does the same and I begin running, my friend following close behind.

"Yeah!"

* * *

"Aw, shit!"

"Come on! Are you kidding me? I told you how to fight!"

"It's not my damn fault I'm new at this!"

The trip to the green field was quick, and it still looked just as amazing as it did the first day. Alexander couldn't shut up about it. When he spotted the bores that wandered around the area, he decides, like an idiot, to charge the damn things. The only thing that kept him from dying was that he attacked only one.

Well, at first anyway.

I tried giving him pointers, but he can't seem to get it though his head that just slashing and hacking when the Frenzy Boar charges him won't help him. He's already half way dead.

"Thank god you can't feel any pain in here." He says, sprawled out across the ground.

"Else you'd of turned into a women just now. Maybe you already are. I've already told you that swinging the damn thing willy nilly isn't going to do anything. You need to use a sword skill. Just do as I do. Watch."

I unsheathed my iron sword, wielding it in my right hand. Breathe in, and out; after taking a deep breath, I lowered my pose and raised my sword as if I was going to shoulder it. The system sensed the pose correctly and the sword slowly started shining orange.

"Ha!"

With a low yell, I jumped off the ground and cover the distance between me and the Frenzy Bore instantly, and I score a single top to bottom vertical slash on the beast. It gave a painful cry before its body shattered like glass into infinite polygons and disappeared. Purple numbers appeared, showing how much virtual experience points I gained.

"See? Easy. That was Sonic Leap. A basic straight one handed sword move. The starting position also mimicked the curved sword move Reaver. You need to get in the starting position. You'll feel a build up of power and when it peaks, you let it go." I say as I demonstrate the move once more on another bore. The bore died just as easily as the last.

"That easy?" Alexander asked, finally sitting up.

"Yeah. You make it out like it's so complicated. Here, get into position, and I'll lure a bore to you. Just be careful not to hit me." I say as I charge a lone Frenzy Bore. I don't attack, just get it's attention by spooking it. The bore huffs at me and charges. I turn and start running towards Alexander, who's moving into the same position as I was. His sword glows a similar color.

I leapt to the left to avoid the bore, and slapped it forward with the flat part of my sword. The bore gets angry, but keeps charging, content to attack someone, anyone.

His movement that was completely different to the ones before. With this crisp sound the sword drew its flame red trajectory through the air, striking the bore's neck. It's large body shattered, and the same window that graced me graced him.

"Hell yeah!"

"See? Was that so hard?" I shake my head. "I swear to god, it's easier trying to teach my baby sister this then you."

"I'm going to kill some more!" Alexander shouts, charging a group of eight boars head on without a thought.

"The hell!? Alex! Get back here! Damn it!" I say as I run in after him.

When reaches the group, he takes one down quickly, but gets rammed by another. He's thrown to the ground, then rights himself just in time to barely dodge another.

"Um, Alto! A little help!"

"Idiot! You can't just charge things like that!" I say as I take a bore down. "If you die, that's your fault!"

"What happens if that happens?" He asks as he slashes a another.

"You'll respawn at the town. You can come back or wander about, whatever you want to do. Aw!" One bore gets a hit on me.

"Come on man, this isn't funny! I'm gonna die in one more hit!"

"Kind of busy here Alexander!"

"If I die, I'm not coming back here! Oh god!" Alexander shouts as a bore gets another hit on him. His health depleted all the way.

"Damn it Alex!"

Just like the bores that we've killed, he burst into polygons.

"Great." Now I have to deal with these five bores myself.

"I didn't die during the beta, I'm not going to tarnish that record now damn it."

Two bores simultaneously break.

I'm a little confused, but I don't let it distract me. I go ahead and attack two of them, and they fall easily. The third died from an attack that's not from me.

"Hey! Dude! You okay?"

The man before had reddish hair held up by a bandanna and simple leather armor worn over this thin body. I couldn't guess what age he was since his avatar was not his actual body. He was the one who spoke.

"Um, yeah. Thanks for that."

"Hey, no problem." He looked at me a little longer, and I raised an eyebrow, silently questioning what he was interested in.

"Are you a beta player?" He asks.

I give a laugh. "What gave it away? And don't think I don't see you Prince Charming." I call to the man behind him, who was content to watch the sky. He turns to look at me, and gives me a sheepish smile.

"Hey Alto." Kirito gives me a wave.

"Nice to see you too. Come on, we took down eight floor bosses together, and you won't even say hi? I'm heart broken." I dramatically clutch my chest and stagger back. The other man laughs while Kirito still has that smile on his face. "Who's your new friend here?"

The man points at himself with his thumb. "The name's Cline. Obviously not my real name."

"And he's already said mine but I'll say it again. I'm Alto. Good to meet you Cline." I shake his hand.

"Likewise." He glances at the ground where Alex was. "Sorry we couldn't save your friend."

"Oh, it's fine. He'll get back soon. Or wander. Most likely wander." I scratch my nose. "You guys up for some hunting? I'd like to reach level four or five before the day's out."

"Sure!" Cline seems just as excited as Alex was. Kirito doesn't reply, but considering he's with a new player, he'll follow anyway, maybe even participate.

So for the rest of the day I go ahead and slaughter Frenzy Bore. Cline was having a blast doing the same, laughing almost the entire time. Sometimes though, he would stop to mess with other things. Kirito was engaging rarely, mostly helping Cline with different things. I was more content on just killing the things. By the time the sun was setting in Aincrad, I was already a level four.

Now we were on a hill top, with Cline sitting down while Kirito and I stood, watching the sun set.

"Hard to believe this is virtual reality." I say. Even as many hours as I'd put into the beta, it still blew my mind how everything in here was.

"So SAO is the first game for the NerveGear that you've played?" Kirito asked Cline.

"Yeah." He replied. "Well to be exact I sorta bought the hardware in a rush after I managed to get my hands on SAO. There was only ten thousand in the first batch. So I suppose I was really lucky...well, if I think about it you two were ten times luckier when you guys got picked for beta testing. They only picked a thousand!"

"Ah, yeah, I suppose." Kirito scratches the back of his head.

I give a sigh. "You have no idea."

Both Cline and Kirito looked at me.

"Mine was probably a little more lucky then Kirito. Here's the story; I'm barely thirteen, and my family and I are in a mall. This random ass man jumps us and shout that they're having a contest. _'The winner gets a fabulous prize! All we need is your name and phone number!'_ My parents let me go ahead and put in our number and my name. Now I knew my chances of winning something like this was slim. I just threw it in there to get the man away from me. He would follow you a good four meters before he left. A few days later, we get a call from some representative from Argus, saying that I won the contest. The prize was a brand new set of NerveGear, becoming a beta tester for their new game SAO, and getting a free copy of said game when it released. Just a few hours ago, it came by mail." I shake my head. "Thank god I didn't have to stay in those lines. I'd of killed myself, or the others around me."

"Wow." Cline said. His eyes glanced to the bottom right corner of his vision. "Well, I should log off and eat. I ordered some pizza for 5:30."

"You're prepared for this, weren't you?" I smirk.

"Of course!" He said proudly. "I promised to meet some mates at the Starting City in a bit. I could introduce you guys to some of them and you could register them as friends. That way you would always send messages. How about it?"

"Errr... Hmmm..." Kirito mumbled subconsciously

He doesn't seem very comfortable with what Cline suggests. Frankly, I don't either. I don't know who those people are, and I'd feel like a third wheel in everything.

"Sorry dude, but maybe next time. We'd like to know them more before hand. Would feel a little awkward." I reply for myself and Kirito.

"Ah, I don't mean to force you. There'll be a chance to introduce them sometime anyway." Cline says.

"Right. Thanks though."

"Yeah...thanks."

As soon as Kirito finishes his sentence, Cline shakes his head vigorously.

"Hey, hey! I should be the one thanking you. I received a lot of help from you. I'll pay you back sometime soon. Mentally."

"Christ alive, I like you." I smirk. He smirks right back.

"I'll log off for a bit. Thanks a lot Kirito. Be seeing you guys." We shake his hand before he gives so other wave and opens his menu.

"I wonder if Alexander's still on." I say to myself as I check my friends list. "That's a negative. Must have gotten hungry. I'll have to make today up to him."

"Eh?" Cline said in a strange tone.

"What's this? ...there's no logout button."

I pause, then glance at him, as does Kirito. "No button...? No way, look a bit closer."

"It's really not there. You take a look guys." We both begin doing so.

"That doesn't seem right." I say as I scroll through the main menu. "Are you sure you didn't just..."

...

"The hell?"

"Not there right?" He repeats.

"Right..." Kirito replies.

Cline smiles and rubs his chin. "Well, it's the first day so these sort of bugs could occur. Around about now the GMs should be crying by now from the amount of messages flooding in."

"You do remember that you have a pizza waiting on you right?" I raise an eyebrow.

"That's right! Argh! My anchovy pizza and ginger ale!"

"The GMs haven't responded. The hell's going on? Would a bug like this occur after two months of beta testing? Even with nine thousand more people?" I look at Kirito.

"Isn't there some other way to log out?" Cline asks.

"Only three ways that I know of. Either we log out ourselves, which we can't do. Someone removes the NerveGear from our heads, or the GMs log us out themselves, but I'm not sure about the latter. If this bug's been here since the game started, there should be thousands of complaints. They should have responded by now." I say.

"Remove the NerveGear? I live alone guys." He rubs his neck. "What about you guys?"

"I have my parents and two sisters. They'll unhook me come dinner, which is around seven I think."

"H-How old is your sister?" Cline suddenly looked at me, his eyes sparkling.

"Oh hell no. I'll beat you to a pulp if you start stalking her."

"Woah, woah, let's calm down now." Kirito stood between us.

"This is a strange bug."

"It's not just a bug, it's an impossible to logout bug, it's a big enough problem to bother the operation of the game itself. Like your pizza in the real world is getting colder every second, it's an actual economical loss, isn't it?" Kirito says as he glances at both of us.

"...a cold pizza...it's as meaningless as hard nato!"

"Oh, come on." I laugh.

"The company which created SAO, _Agas_ is a company that's famous for being considerate about its users, isn't it? That's why everyone was fighting to get their hands on a copy even though it's the first online game. It's sorta meaningless if they screw up like this on their first day." Kirito says.

 _ **Diiiiiing**_

 _ **Dooooong**_

 _ **Diiiiiing**_

 _ **Dooooong**_

"Bells are ringing." I state the obvious.

Kirito, Cline and I were immersed in a clear blue pillar of light. Past the blue veil, the plains in my vision blurred steadily. As the blue light faded, my surroundings became clear again. However, this wasn't the plains lit with the sunset anymore.

"Wha?" This is the first time that I'm left dumbfounded.

We were back in the plaza of the Starting City.

I look at Kirito and Cline, who are just as surprised as I am, Kline more so, since his mouth's open. All around us, others are already here or are appearing in a similar fashion as we were, and just as confused.

"What's happening?"

"Can we log out now?"

"Can't they take care of it quickly?"

"Is this a joke?"

"Get the hell out here, GMs!"

This and more could be heard.

I look around and upon no longer seeing blue lights, assume that almost ten thousand of us occupy the plaza. I glance at the sky.

"What the hell is that?"

Everyone almost automatically turns their eyes upward and looked. There a strange sight greeted us.

The bottom surface of the second floor, one hundred meters up in the air, was checkered in red. [Warning] and [System Announcement] crisscrossing each other. I assumed they were going to talk about the logout bug.

I was right, but the way they did so was not what I was expecting.

From the middle of the pattern a liquid with the same consistency to blood started oozing down slowly. It didn't fall all the way down though. It began to take a form.

The form it took was that of a large red hooded figure with two arms spread wide open, with no legs or face visible.

"This is new!" I run a hand through my hair.

The ghost like figure then spoke with a loud, monotone voice. "Players, welcome to my world. Welcome to Sword Art Online. I am Kayaba Akihiko." the thing continued, "I am currently the only person who can control this world."

"Kayaba...Akihiko?" Cline whispered.

"...what?" Was Kirito's response.

I had no words to describe the shock of having the creator of the game before us.

"I trust that you have already noticed the logout button is missing from the main menu." Kayaba continued. "However, this is not a game malfunction. I repeat – This is not a game malfunction, but an original feature of Sword Art Online."

"Original feature?" I can hear many people say, other just mumble.

"You cannot log out of Sword Art Online on your own. No one on the outside will be able to shut down or remove the NerveGear. Should this be attempted, the transmitter inside the NerveGear will emit a powerful burst of microwave radiation, destroying your brain and thus ending your life." Kayaba stated as if it were common knowledge.

"The...fuck?" I can't stop the word from spilling from my lips. Others were just as shocked as I was. We could hear shouts of anger and shock from everyone present.

Kayaba decides to throw in another curve ball for us. "Unfortunately, the friends and family members of several players have ignored this warning and attempted to remove the NerveGear. As a result, two hundred thirteen players have permanently retired from both Aincrad and the real world."

"Two hundred...and thirteen..." Cline says.

"Dead..." I finish.

"As you can see; news organizations across the world are reporting all of this, including the deaths. Thus, you can assume that the danger of your NerveGear being removed is now minimal. I hope you will relax and attempt to clear the game." News reports from different news organizations popped up around the hooded figure. One of the feeds caught my interest. I couldn't see what station it was from, but I could see who was on it.

It was me.

With my mom trying to comfort my crying sisters while paramedics were checking my unconscious body.

"Jesus Christ." I held my head.

"However, do take note of this – You can no longer respawn in this game. Once your HP reaches zero, your avatar will be permanently erased. At the same time, the NerveGear will destroy your brain."

"B-but if that's true, t-then-" I had to stop.

Alex...

That's why...

He didn't...

He's...

But...

No...

"No, no, no!"

"You need only fulfil one condition to set yourselves free; Clear the game." A map then appeared in front of him, showing the entire world of Aincrad. "You are currently on the 1st floor, the lowest level of Aincrad. Make your way through each dungeon, defeat the Floor Boss and you will advance to the next level. Defeat the final boss on the 100th floor and you will clear the game."

"But the beta players barely made it through level eight." Cline now.

"And, finally, you can find a gift from me in your item storage. Please check for yourselves."

As soon as I heard this, I pressed my finger and thumb together and pulled downwards. All the players did likewise and the plaza was filled with the ringing sound of bells.

The name of the item; hand mirror.

I tapped on the name and pressed the _"make into object"_ button. Immediately afterward there was a tinkling sound effect and a small rectangular mirror appeared.

I grabbed the item and stared at it. There didn't seem anything special about it. All I could see was my own reflection in the thing.

Then, suddenly, Cline, Kirito and the avatars around me were engulfed in white light. But I wasn't for some reason. All I could do was watch, though only after three seconds the light dimmed.

What I saw next was amazing to even me.

"Holy hell. Cline? Kirito?"

They both looked so different than their avatars. Clines' eyes were sunken and shone brighter than his normal avatars'. His nose was hooked and a slight beard now appeared on his cheeks and chin. He still had the bandana on his head.

Kirito's hair was short and neat, but his eyes and face were so delicate that it could lead you to believe he was a girl if you didn't pay attention.

They looked at me, then each other, then back at me, and again, once more at each other.

"You're Cline!?"

"You're Kirito!?"

Their voices were different too.

I looked around, and much like the two men before me, everyone else has changed. Instead of looking like anime characters, now they resembled children, teens, and adults. I also noticed that many of the girls that use to be here are now gone.

"You look different!" Cline shouted.

"So do you!" Kirito replies. They both look at me, seeing that I haven't changed.

"Why didn't you change!?" They ask in union.

"Answer me this guys; are those your real bodies? If so, this is my real body. I never changed my avatar to look like anything else, just myself."

"How would the NerveGear even know what our bodies look like?" Kirito asks himself.

"Oh." Cline snaps his fingers. "Remember the system setup? Where you had to pat yourself?" He mimicked said action.

"That's right." Me.

"That setup is for the NerveGear to measure how much you had to move your hand to reach your body. It probably saved that data."

"All of you must be wondering why." Kayaba continued without missing a beat. "Why would Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, do all this? My goal has already been achieved. I wanted to create my own world that I could observe and admire. That is why I made Sword Art Online. And now, it has all been fulfilled."

"You bastard!" I shout at him, though I'm sure he's ignoring me. "What sick fucker gets off of killing kids!?" There were a few children in here, and some of the teens here were about as young as I was.

"This ends the tutorial for the official Sword Art Online launch. I wish every player the best of luck." The red ghost began to fizzle and fade, static lining the edges of his virtual image. Finally he faded away and silence filled the entire coliseum.

No one seemed to get it at first. No one wanted to believe what they just heard. I didn't want to believe what I heard. But he showed us evidence of just what would happen if we died in here, of how the outside world was reacting to such a thing.

You couldn't say something like that and lie about it. No.

He made this game into what he wanted; another reality. A reality where death has the same consquences as it did in the real world. Only here, it was so much more dangrouse.

He made this world. This world was his. He was a god here.

My dad, mom, my sisters...

Pets, friends, family...

I had to get back.

"This fucker wants us to beat all one hundred floors huh?" I whisper to myself. I glance at Kirito, who grabs Cline and makes a beeline to the exits.

"Kirito!? Wait up!"

A scream then echoed through the coliseum inciting the mob mentally that I knew would occur sooner or later. Everyone's immediate reaction was to panic, some grabbing onto others, throwing punches, screaming, crying. A wall of bodies blocked my path to Kirito.

"Damn it! Move! Out of the way! Piss off!" I shout as I head the opposite direction of Kirito. There's a little less people, so I can shove and push them out of my way. When I reach the exit, I bolt, opening the menu and checking my map.

"Next village. Need to get to the next village." I need money, resources, and experience. I needed to get the best equipment, and raise my level like crazy before we go against the first floor boss. I'll be just as cautious or even more when fighting bosses. It would have helped if I could buy myself in game currency with real world money now, but that Kayaba bastard probably cut all that off to make this the real deal. I'm alone on this one.

There's a few bores in front of me, with one that's already charging me from the front. I simply pull out my sword and attack it head on.

"Bring it!" It was a challenge to both the bore and the creator.


	2. Chapter 2

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

 _"You know this is your fault right?"_

 _I blink, a frown on my lips. "How is this my fault?"_

 _"You guys played the game. For two months. Now we're stuck in them. You should have told us something was wrong."_

 _I shake my head, and I can feel my anger starting to rise. "How was I supposed to know this would happen? It's not like that Kayaba came to us one day and said 'Hey guys, listen. I'm going to trap ten thousand people in a video game and make in-game death real death. Isn't that wonderful?' He showed no signs he was this unstable."_

 _"But there could have been a clue anywhere. Something must have been wrong, anything."_

 _"Nothing did. It seemed like it was a video game. Nothing like this."_

 _"Well then, what about you?"_

 _"Me?"_

 _"You could have done something about it."_

 _I growl. "Damn it, I didn't know this would happen! What more do you want from me!?"_

 _"You could have helped."_

 _"Who!?"_

 _"Everyone. All the players new to this game. You could have done something."_

 _He has a point. "I know."_

 _"Then why don't you?"_

 _"I..."_

 _"That's not good enough."_

 _A sudden sharp pain hits my chest, and I let out a scream. I drop to the ground, and very slowly, look at my chest. It now holds a sword._

 _"You could have done something."_

 _"Ah!" I grab the sword. "God!"_

 _"Anything."_

 _"Shut up!"_

 _"But no. You ran."_

 _"Shut up, damn it!"_

 _"How many will die?"_

 _"Stop it!"_

 _"Hundreds? Thousands?"_

 _"No!" I cover my ears, but I can still hear him clear as day._

 _"You're a coward."_

 _"No! Stop!"_

 _"Pathetic."_

 _"Please!"_

 _"Weak."_

 _"Stop it!"_

 _"Worthless."_

 _"Please! Stop it! Shut up!" Tears are flowing down my face. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen! Please, just stop!"_

 _The two man take a step forward._

 _I recognize both. One in game, one out._

 _The one out of game has shorter than myself my a few inches. His hair was brown and short, while his body was thin, his arms like bones, white skin stretching over them. But the most striking feature was his eyes. Instead of the normal green they were, they were now a solid black, with blood streams running down them._

 _Alexander and Alex glanced at me, and raised their weapons._

 _"Murderer."_

 _They striked._

* * *

"Hah!"

I shot up from my bed with a yelp, eyes wide and my body drenched in sweat, somehow. I eyeball the dark room, looking for any signs of anything out of place, but soon stop when I remember that players can't break into other players rooms.

Day one of SAO. And things aren't good.

When I made it to the village, I proceeded to do as many of the missions and kill as many monsters as I could. The missions were fairly simple here; deliver a message, kill some monsters, catch a thief, and find the killer. The reward was money and and a better sword. I used the money to purchase some leather armor and grab a room from the inn.

While I was out and about, a few other players passed through the town, mostly beta players. And every single one gave me the same reply when I asked about the rest.

Most of the players weren't moving from the Starting City, too shocked to do much. Expectedly, the monsters around the town were all being killed in droves. Some players had even resorted to suicide in-game to prove that they'd wake in the real world. A few beta players had formed small parties to try and help the players, but nothing could undo the damage done.

As for now, they wouldn't move from the city for another day or two until they were confident they could kill the monsters in the surrounding area. That gave me time.

Though I'm not so sure I feel so good for doing what I did.

Alex was right. I am a coward.

But it's too late for that. I'm here now, so I have to stick it out.

So the next thing I have to do is get more money. I can try redoing the missions since they've restarted, though I'm sure the other players who passed by have already done so. But I do remember hearing from some other beta testers before the game came out that there was a quest with some decent armor as a reward in the area. I'll see if that hasn't been taken.

I shake my head to clear it of the drowsiness, then open my menu to re-equip my shirt, armor, and weapon. As soon as I'm ready, I exit the room and leave the inn.

I'm not running like I was yesterday. Yesterday was me in panic mode. I was almost as shocked as most of the players here. Keyword; almost. Kirito had the right idea. He's doing the same thing I am right now; looking for quests and trying to bring his level up as high as he can and as quickly as he can. I have to keep telling myself that this is how I have to play the game if I want to get out of here and back to reality. Even if I feel bad about it.

I have a feeling those nightmares are going to stay with me for awhile.

The town I'm walking through is empty, save for the few NPC vendors that are located around the area. I haven't seen another player since around ten at night, though I'm sure others have passed by while I was asleep.

When I exit the town safe zone, I start to wander, though now I jog while holding my sword. The monsters here are a little higher than the ones in the starting city, but are still easy to take down. If I pass any that are close by, I go ahead and kill them. I'm still trying to raise my level here.

Now if I remember correctly, there's an NPC just standing out here. The only thing that I know is that it's standing next to a cave on the east side of town.

"Hey!"

"Get back here!"

I stop my jogging and kneel.

"Leave me alone!"

It's nearby, and there's probably a group of them chasing one. She must have something they really want, enough to chase her for it.

My common sense says I should keep looking for the quest and get the armor, but my virtue keeps telling me to go see what the commotion is and try to help if possible. And my virtues win out.

I ignore the sirens going off in my head. _'You're suppose to get the armor!'_ A voice inside my head shouts to me. But my morality tells me that I need to help in anyway I can. I ignored morality yesterday, running off on my own to get the quests and such, and that's something I'm not proud of. I don't hate myself for doing that. Not yet anyway. Just give me a few more nights with Alex and Alexander, and then I'll start to. But maybe, just maybe, I can start to make some sort of amends.

"Stay away from me!" The girl's' voice is getting louder. I pinpoint it and stalk towards a boulder, the people just behind it. When I reach it, I take a peek.

There's three people in all; two boys and one girl. I can't get a good look at the two boys. The only thing I can see is that they have white skin.

The girl I could see better since she was facing my direction. Her skin was also white. Her black hair reached a little past her shoulders and some strands were curled. She was holding a two handed ax before her, gritting her teeth.

"Give us that item!" One boy shouts at her.

She growls in response. "No! It's not yours!"

"I don't see your name written on it!" The second boy says.

"That doesn't matter! I need it!"

"We need it more!"

"Screw you!"

"We'll take it even if we have to fight you for it!"

"It's mine! Just-" you can see the panic in her black eyes. "Stay back! I'll kill you!" She raises her ax. If you stare at it closely enough, you can see a slight shake.

Okay, this is getting out of hand. Obviously the girl got an item and the boys somehow found this out. Now they want it and are threatening to kill her for it. I think I know who's in the right here. So I'll have to scare the boys away.

"I'm done me-ahh!"

"Gah!"

Both boys stumble back when a blue light fills their vision, and they watch their HP drop slightly. I used a simple skill, one that only took a quarter of their health. The girl seems startled, and stares me down. I turn to the boys to see they're eyeballing me, gripping their chests.

"I recommend you leave the girl alone before things get ugly." I say calmly.

"Holy hell!" One boy shouts. "It's a beta tester!"

"Oh god! Run man, run!" They stumble back some more before taking off as fast as their legs could take them.

I sheathed my sword and turn to the girl. She's still staring, through her mouth slightly agape.

"Are you alright?" I say gently. My words seem to jog her out of her state. She shakes her head, then gives a quick glance. Then bows her head.

"I-I'm fine. Thank you." She stutters slightly.

"What were those two boys after? Must have been something with decent value."

She looks at me again, but takes a step back, bringing her ax up slightly. I immediately raise my hands.

"Let's calm down here. I'm not trying to take it. Should have clarified that before, but sometimes I don't think before I say things. Let's start over. My name is Alto. I'd like to know yours." I keep my hands up and take a step back to give her some space.

She seems to calm down, bringing her ax down. She eyed me warily though.

"I'm Mako." She puts her ax on her back. I drop my hands.

"See? We can be civilized."

"They were trying to take this from me." She brings up her right hand. On her index finger, a thin black ring sits.

"Oh. Tranquility. Keeps monsters from attacking you unless you attack them." I give her a smile. "You got lucky there. No one in the beta got that ring until the last week of the testing. So they saw you get the item?"

She frowns. "They were in my party. Turned on me when they saw me get it. Idiots." She growls slightly. She opens her menu, then disbands the party. Her frown disappeared soon after, the she looks at me.

"So... You're a beta player?" She asks hesitantly.

"Um, yeah."

There's an awkward silence between us. Mako's staring at the ground, twiddling her fingers, occasionally glancing at me. I'm doing the same, but rubbing the back of my head. I don't know how, but it's like that for a good minute or two.

"So, um, I'll just be going then." I turn.

"Wait!"

I pause. Wait? For what? What the heck is she talking about? I turn my head, and she can see the confusion of my face. Her face colors slightly.

"What do you want?"

I raise an eyebrow. "Excuse me?

"You saved me. So what do you want?" She closes her eyes.

"The hell are you talking about?"

She gives a sigh and her face gets more colorful. "Like I just said; you saved me. I'm in your debt. And I don't like being in debt to people. So tell me what you want me to do. I'll help you with a quest if it's required."

Oh, so she's one of those kind of people.

So she won't leave me be until she 'repays' me.

"Well... Hm." I point at her. "There's a quest I'm trying to do. I wouldn't mind the help." I tap her nose. "But only if you want to help. I will not force you to."

She crosses her eyes to look at my finger, then glares at me and swats my hand away from her.

"Okay. Let's go."

"You're a strange girl, you know that?" I motion to her to follow me. She walks next to me. "Is it bad that I just want to be nice?"

"No, but I'm still bothered by it."

"Why's that?"

"Well, beta players aren't known to be the helpful kind. At least a good majority of them. Almost all of them upped and ran when that sycho said we were trapped in here. Most already know that."

"Can you blame them? I mean, it seems like the natural reaction people would do. The older beta players may have tried to help, but the younger ones just want to get out of here alive. How were you when he announced we were stuck in here and that game death equalled real death?" I raise and eyebrow. Her own fro as she stares forward. She turns to me again.

"I was terrified.

"And so was I. I was afraid for my life. And could I really trust anyone? You made a party with those two kids and they turned on you the second you got something they didn't have."

"You made your point." She deadpans.

"But you see how it- there she is." I snap my fingers. I jog to the NPC, Mako close behind me. Said NPC was an old women wearing a cloak of some sort. She was short and a little large.

"Want to know a secret?" She asks.

"Of course I do." I smirk. Mako rolls her eyes.

"In this cave," she points to the cave next to her. "Lies a treasure that's said to protect its owners when it's found." She frowns. "I'd get it myself, but my old bones can barely move. If you get it, come to me, and I'll give you something special."

"Okay. Let's get a move on." I clap my hands once before heading into the cave, Mako close behind.

"Do you even know what you're after?"

"During the beta, I heard some players talking about some armor on the first level that was really good. I never got it then, but I'm hoping I'll get it now."

"Are you even sure that it's here anymore?"

"Well, the NPC's still there, and this is a one time quest, so I'm very confident that it's still here." I look at her. "Word of advice; be very careful. Like Kayaba said, we die for real. Take things slow and expect the unexpected. If things get out of hand, bug out. It's not worth it for one or both of us to die for some piece of armor. Got it?"

"O...okay." She stutters slightly. She may have been a little startled by my change of demeanor, but she'll be more inclined to listen because of it.

The cave we enter isn't really dark despite our decent, but you'll have a hard time seeing any farther than seven feet at least. Both Mako and myself have already drawn our weapons, with Mako lagging a little behind. We walk slowly, looking for anything that was remotely out of place in here.

"I see movement. On our left." Mako states, tightening her grip on her ax.

"I see it. There's more on our right and above us." Whatever these creatures are, they're not very keen on keeping their presence a secret. But it tells us that they're smart enough to think of a strategy of some sort. They're waiting for the right moment to attack.

From what small glances I can catch, they seem to be as large a wolves, but they're scaly. Some are green on top and white below, with others being covered in black/green stripes.

"Looks like we're coming up to an open area." I say as we reach the bottom of the hall. It's a decently massive room, though the floor only covers a small portion while the rest is a bottomless pit, and on the other side of it is the armor we're looking for, a beam of light shining over it.

"We're headed into a trap. Be ready." I set my sword just above my shoulder.

We reach the center of the clearing when the surrounding area glows a deep purple. The suit stays put, but the path behind us disappears. Both of us get into a stance, but Mako looks a little nervous. As am I.

The creatures we saw earlier fall from the ceiling to the arena around is, now showing what they really were. Their eyes were big and red, though some others had darker eyes. Their jaws were huge, sharp teeth sticking out of them, and they had weird little, I don't know, spike like appendages on their head that traveled down its' spine. I've never seen them before. The name above them was Nightstalker.

The Nightstalkers didn't wait a second before they charged us. Mako and I responded in kind, charging the closest beast.

What surprised me a little is that these things take three hits to go down. I seem to be doing fine, with a few Nightstalkers getting a lucky bite in. Mako doesn't seem to be as calm as I am. She's looks like she handling it like a pro, but she's moving a little too slow. She's also not wearing armor like I am, so the hits she takes lowers her HP more so.

"Keep moving! Don't let these things corner you! Only get close when you need to!"

"Got it!" She jumps back to gain some distance, but fails to notice the beast that's right behind her. All it does is swing its' head, and she goes tumbling to the ground.

"Damn it!" I have no choice but to ignore the Nightstalker in front of me and charge for Mako. She's trailing back, vainly trying to get away from the Nightstalker that attacked her. When the thing lunges at her, her eyes widen in panic. It doesn't reach her though, because I'm in front of her just as he bites down. Right on my arm.

I kill that creature quickly, but can't contain a scream of pain.

"Ah! Son of a bitch! That..." My own eyes widen as I look at my arm. "Hurt?"

I shouldn't be hurting.

"Alto!"

Not now. Think later.

"Get up and start running to the armor! Ignore everything else!" I grab her and throw her to her feet, then push her towards the armor, myself following close behind. The Nightstalkers are also chasing after us, with the ones in front trying to tackle is. Mako and I are able to dodge them mostly, with some hitting our arms or just scraping by.

"Grab it!" I shout as we reach the armor. I attack what beasts I can while backtracking, trying to keep them off Mako. I see her take the armor, but one Nightstalker tackles her from behind. It gets a hit in before falling to her ax.

"Now what!?" She panicking alright.

I don't respond. I throw another attack at my attackers and charge towards Mako. Before long, she notices that I'm not slowing down, and begins to shake her head.

"Alto! Slow down! Alto!" She raises her free hand.

"I hope to god this works!" I scream as I grab her and jump into the pit.

Mako may be to shocked to scream because she's silent. I waste no time raise my only teleport crystal.

"Teleport! Horunka!"

We're both engulfed by a white light. It seems to last forever, but when the light vanishes, we both slam painfully into the ground. We bounce twice before finally coming to a stop, both of us on our backs. I can see a blue sky, white clouds...

And the inn I stayed at.

We release the breath we were holding, then begin taking huge gulps of air. I don't know if we even breath air in here, but it sure feels like it.

"You...reckless...idiot..." Mako says between pants.

"We're...alive...a...aren't we..." I reply in kind. She doesn't say anything but weakly punches my shoulder.

"O...ow..."

"Don't...patronize me..."

I'm not sure how long we stay like that, but it's not too long. When we finally stand the sun hasn't changed position, so at most a half hour. When up and Mako's given me the armor, we start heading to the old lady NPC. It's only a few minutes before we find her again.

"You got it. How wonderful."

"Okay. So what was the other thing?" I ask.

"Just as promised, here's something special."

A window opens and asks if I want to trade. I accept and see the item I've been given.

"F-five thousand col!? And a sword!?" I look at the NPC. "I thought you wanted to trade the armor?"

"After you went through the trouble of getting it?" The old lady laughs. "That would be too cruel. No, you can keep that. You kids have fun." The NPC then turns very slowly to the opposite direction of us, and begins walking away.

"Well... That was interesting."

"If almost dying for some armor is interesting, then sure, yeah."

...

...

"Here. Accept the trade." I say as I open my items window.

"What?" Mako looks at me like I'm crazy. A window pops up in front of her. She raises an eyebrow, but accepts anyway.

"Items; three thousand col?! Leather armor!? One handed sword!? What's this for!?"

"Well, I don't need the sword or the armor anymore." I say as I equip Arendale Armor, colored a dark grey that completely covered my upper body as well as my arms and shoulders. "And the money, well, that's just being nice."

"But this is yours. You keep it."

"Look, I gave these to you because you almost died getting this armor for me. This has nothing to do with dept. I'm giving this to you to help you survive. You'll last longer if you have armor, and the sword could be used as a backup weapon of you get the skill to use it." I take her shoulders. "Listen and listen well. The next town from here. There's a NPC with a good two handed ax. If you kill him, he'll drop the ax and it's yours. In the same town you'll find some easy quests, and the area to the south is filled with low level monsters, just past a crater. Go there and level up as much as you can, get as much col as you can and get stronger. Okay? Can you do that for me?"

She looks at me with wide eyes, and blinks a few times. She lets out a deep breath through her nose. "Why...are you helping me?"

"Because I almost killed you. For some stupid armor. Maybe if it was myself I wouldn't have a problem, but you almost died trying to get something for me. For me! I can't let that happen. I've already let one person die, and I can't accept another doing the same for something as trivial for some pieces of metal. Just please, promise me that you'll survive. Please? I need to know." I couldn't look at her. I felt like scum for what I put her though. Next time a quest like this pops up, I go in alone, and if I die, at least I won't take someone with me.

I don't know the expression of her face since I'm not looking at it. All I hear is another exhale from her. "Okay." She says it with such conviction. It helps me a little.

"Good." I release her. She gives me a worried expression on my behalf.

"I...I guess I should be going then." I raise my hand to her. She takes it and we shake. "It was nice knowing you, for however short a time it was." She doesn't say anything, but we let go and I start walking away.

"Alto."

I pause.

"You're not a bad person."

I don't respond.

"Don't blame yourself for what happens Alto. They happen, and there's nothing you can do about it. You can only make the best of it. I know this won't magically make you feel better, but know at least one person in this game sees you the way I do."

I...

...

I give a small chuckle, the turn my head to her. "You're a lot more perspective then I gave you credit for." I give her one of my biggest smiles. "Thank you...for saying that. I...I really needed that."

"So, can I hope to see you again?"

"Hell yeah." I point at myself. "I'm not letting this psychopath win that easily. Just give me a year and I'll be clearing the 100 floor boss!"

"I think I believe you." She chuckles.

"So do you remember what I said?"

"NPC has an ax I can use. Easy quests and monsters to the south past a crater. Yeah, I got it."

"And that if things get too hot, bug out."

"Yes dad." She rolls her eyes but smiles.

I give her a sloppy two finger salute. "Stay safe Mako."

"You too Alto."

We went our separate ways.


	3. Chapter 3

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

How long has it been? About a month? And where am I?

Still on floor one.

I'm definitely not reaching the hundredth floor within the year.

So my one month of traveling hasn't been all that interesting. I've just wandered about doing as I said I would; trying to get stronger. I've also changed my approach to people. When I see people that I don't recognize from the beta, I give them tips. Where nearby quests may be, good hunting spots, what to watch out for, how to fight depending on their choice of weapons. Most figure out that I'm a beta once I give the information. Most react with thanks and gratitude, though a select few do react badly, saying how I abandoned other players. I only let them speak their mind without interruption, since they do speak half the truth now. I did abandon the players in the beginning, but have been helping any I've seen while traveling. Only did one ever try and actually to kill me. Now that's some scary stuff. Thankfully I was at a higher level at the time. I ended up bringing his HP to the yellow before hightailing it out of there.

Now I'm standing on the outskirts of Tolbana, one of the larger towns on the floor. I've been hearing rumors around the area of some meeting regarding something big. Suppose to start around 4 pm.

Kind of foreboding though, considering the 300-meter wide, 100-meter tall squat tower a little off in the distance

The First Floor Dungeon.

Yeah, really foreboding.

"Well, still have a few hours, so let's get a bite to eat."

As I enter the city the purple letters [INNER AREA] flowed into my view, showing I had entered a safe town area. I let out a sigh of relief. It's stressful, traveling by yourself with some players wanting to kill you because you're a beta. At least in towns I can relax.

I absentmindedly scratch my head, even though I'm not itchy. It's become a trait of mine lately. Sometimes I just need to move.

"Yo, dude." I wave at a passing player, a boy who looks around 17. "You know where the blacksmith and bakery is?"

"Blacksmith is down this street next to the inn." The points to the east. "Bakery is in the center of town, that way." He points north.

"Thanks." I give him a nod as I begin moving to the blacksmith. Might as well rent a room for the night too anyways.

It's not a long walk, since the town isn't too big. The blacksmith is right across the street from the inn, so I decide to get a room first.

"Excuse me." I get the attention of the NPC innkeeper. "I'd like to rent a room."

"Sorry sir, but we're fresh out."

"Aw, damn it." I don't bother to speak to the NPC again as I exit the establishment. Guess I'll have to sleep on the streets tonight.

I walk to the NPC blacksmith and hand him my sword, asking him to add +1 Sharpness and +1 Durability to my Reinforced Steel Sword +4. I wait for a short minute before he finishes.

"The upgrade was a success, please come again." He hands me back my sword.

"Thanks." I return it to my scabbard.

"Alto?"

My body locks up. I recognize that voice. I turn quickly, eyes wide.

"Holy hell! Mako!"

She hadn't changed much physically, but her equipment has. She has that ax I told her about. She has some light metal armor that covered her chest and arms. Her clothes have changed from the simple garb she had when the game began into a clean iron chest plate, finguerless gloves, and boots that look more for hiking. The most noticeable thing is that she now has a bandana tied on her head which keeps her hair back.

"Nice to see you too." She smiles.

"Well I'll be damned. Good to see you're still alive." We shake hands. "So what brings you to Tolbana? Can I guess it's the meeting?"

"Yeah. Was hearing it from some players. Decided to investigate. Am I late?"

"No, we have a few hours. But don't bother looking for a room in the inn; they're sold out." I narrow my eyes.

"Aw, damn." She replies. "I wasn't feeling up to sleeping outside."

"Have you ever done that?" I ask curiously.

"No. I always slept in inns. Not once outside. Too dangerous." She crossed her arms.

"Preaching to the choir on that one. Well come on. I was just heading to the bakery to grab a bite. You must be hungry too." I motion for her to follow.

"Not anything too expensive I hope." She raises an eyebrow.

"Nah, just that bland 1 col black bread. Doesn't taste great, but it'll fill you."

"I have something for the bread." Mako looks at me.

"Really? What?"

"It's a cream I got from a quest. I don't think most people do it because it's so long. Took me a good six hours to complete."

"Oh, wow. I would have said to hell with it and left by hour two. You have a hell of a lot more patience than I do. Anything else interesting happen?"

"Well the NPC killing was strange. He respawned a few hours later with the same ax."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah. He recognized me the second time and tried killing me. Killed him again and got another weapon."

I frown and look at the ground. "Sorry about that. I didn't know that would happen."

"Alto, you may be a veteran, but you can't know everything about a mission. But question."

"Yeah?"

"Do you notice any...feeling? When you're injured?"

My mind goes back to the quest that helped get me the armor I'm wearing. When the Nightstalker bit into me and I felt pain.

"Yeah. I noticed it when that Nightstalker got my arm."

"What do you think of it?" She raises an eyebrow.

"Well, from what I can tell, Kayaba wanted to make his own reality. Something that's real for us. To make something real, you need to include all the senses, including pain. He's must have done something to make the pain come back, probably all the way."

"How would you know?"

"A week before, some player tried killing me. I obviously got away, but he took off my arm." I shake a little, looking at my right hand. "That was the most excruciating thing I've ever felt. I'm surprised I didn't pass out from pain."

Mako grims. "He tried killing you? For that reason?" I knew what she was referring to.

"Yeah."

We make it to the place quickly. Mako walks a little ahead of me to the bakery. She ends up buying for both of us.

"Okay, now let me try that cream." I ask as we siting the floor near a fountain.

"Sure. Here." She brings up her window. A few seconds later, a bottle appears from her hand and she places it before me. I tap the object and my finger begins to glow slightly. I bring it over my bread and soon find it covered in a honey colored cream. I take a bite out of the bread, chewing slowly.

"How is it?" Mako asks.

"I'm not fond of the yogurt taste, but it's a lot damn better than before."

"Tell me about it."

We eat in silence, watching as other players walk past us or into the bakery for something to munch on. Some come out with the same bread, while others pick more expensive loufs. Many don't bother glancing at us, but the select few that do give me a nod of recognition which I return. Mako seems to notice this because after we're done eating and the seventh nod is given she asks.

"You know all these people?" I just give her a nod.

"How?"

I don't want to say it out loud, so all I do is point to myself. Mako's confused, but after doing it another time, she gets it.

"Oh."

I chuckle as I look forward. "It shouldn't be all that surprising. I mean after what we...went...hm...is that?" I stand.

From across the courtyard, I spot short and neat black hair, delicate eyes and face. One I recognize.

"Ha ha! Hey, Kirito!" I wave as I take off running. I hear Mako's voice behind me, but can't hear what she says. Kirito looks up from his bread, eyes wide.

"Alto?"

"In the flesh." I stop before him. "How've you been?"

He gives me a small nod and speaks softly. "Good. Good."

"A little better than good I would think." I get close and whisper. "Anneal Blade? Damn it man, you get all the good stuff."

He seems to lose the shyness since he rolls his eyes. "And what about you? Has Arendale's Armor been treating you well?"

"Touché Prince Charming." I turn my head slightly and glance at the person sitting next to him. I couldn't tell much of who it was.

They had a skinny figure, somewhat slender. The torso was equipped with a dark red leather tunic with a lightweight copper breastplate, while the lower body was dressed in neat leather pants, with boots up to the knees. A hooded cape cloaked the body from head to below the waist, so the face could not be seen.

"So, you going to introduce me to your girlfriend?"

The girl bristled at my comment while Kirito's face took on a disturbed look.

"Um... Alto, this is..."

The girl stands, makes a sharp turn, and walks away from us.

"What'd you do Alto?" Mako's voice says from behind me.

"What, I just asked what the girl's name was. Is that so bad?" I raise my hands as I step to the side. "Mako, this is Kirito, also a veteran. Kirito, Mako."

"Nice to meet you Kirito." Mako nods.

"You as well." He nods back.

"Oh! Before anything Kirito, can I ask if you have a room?" I ask.

"Not at the inn. I rented the second floor of a farmhouse. Why?"

"You mind if Mako and I can stay over?" I point at said girl. Her eyes widen slightly as she looks at Kirito.

"Um, err-"

"Come on man, please! I don't care if I have to sleep on the floor, can we just please stay at your place for tonight?"

"Please?" Mako claps her hands together and bows slightly.

...

...

We hear a sigh. "Fine."

"Hell yeah!" I throw a fist into the air. Mako deflates in relief. "Thank you so much Kirito. I'll pay you if it's needed."

"There's no need." He shakes his hands. He looks to the bottom right for of of his vision. "Let's go guys, that meeting's about to start." He stands.

* * *

Tolbana's fountain plaza was a rather large one, the stairs reaching down maybe a dozen meters. Right bellow was a small open area that could be a stage.

Players were crowding around the area in groups 3 and five, though Kirito and the cloaked girl were sitting separately. Mako and I were together on the top of the plaza; Mako sitting down with her knees in her chest while I was standing, leaning on one of the pillars next to the stairs with crossed arms. Everyone's speaking in low voices, likely about what this meeting was about. Kirito, Mako, and myself seemed to have some idea of what it was, or at least guessed.

We hear. clapping sound, and a shouting voice that carried well flowed throughout the plaza.

"Okay! Now then, it's five minutes late, but let's start! Everyone, a bit more to the front...there, come three steps closer!"

The owner of the voice was a swordsman with shiny metallic armor covering his entire body. When I got a look at his face, I was honestly surprised. I would have mistaken him for a fantasy anime character, and I silently wondered if his hair was naturally blue.

"Today, thank you for heeding my summons! Some people here know me, but I will again introduce myself! I am Diabel, and my class in my heart is Knight!"

With that, the people around the fountain burst out with whistles and applause, mixed with various cries like _'You meant Hero, right!'_ flew through the air.

"Now then, as for the reason why I gathered you top players who are active at the front lines like this, I don't think I need to say it, but today, our party found the stairs leading to the top-most floor of that tower. In other words, tomorrow, or at the latest the day after tomorrow, we will reach it: the first floor's Boss Room!"

The players rustled and became noisy among each other. Even I was shocked despite anticipating something like this to happen.

"One month. Coming this far took one month...but even so, we have to set an example. We have to beat the boss, reach the second floor, and show everyone still waiting at the Starting City that it is definitely possible to clear this death game. That is the duty of us top players here right now! Isn't that right, everyone!"

Cheers began erupting from the crowd, along with clapping and whistles.

"Hold on a sec!" A deep and gravelly voice shouted.

The cheering immediately stopped, and the front of the crowd split into two. Standing at the center of the newly opened gap was a short yet solidly built man. The most noticeable feature on him was his hair which reminded me of a cactus.

Diabel merely smiled. "What is it that you need to say? Well, whatever it is, opinions are very welcome. But, if you are going to speak, you should tell us your name first."

"My name's Kibaou."

After taking plenty of time to look at everyone once, Kibaou eventually spoke in an even more threatening voice.

"We all know about the 2000 people that died so far, yeah? Well, some of you need to apologize to them right now!"

At that moment, the audience of forty-odd people that had been murmuring in low voices became completely silent. What Kibaou was insinuating, everyone finally understood. Myself included, of course.

In the oppressive silence, only the evening BGM from the NPC orchestra played quietly. No one tried to speak. If anything was said, then at that instant you would be labeled as one of _'those guys'_ , that was the likely fear on everyone's mind. No, more than likely.

"Kibaou, are you referring to the beta testers?" Diabel asks.

"Course I mean them! The day this stupid ass game started the beta guys just upped and vanished, right? They ditched all us beginners! They snagged all the good hunting spots, and they grabbed all the easy quests too! They were to only ones getting stronger in here! This whole time, they've ignored us like we're nothing!" He growls. "Hell, I bet there's some of them here! Come on out beta testers! We should make them give us all the money and items they got! You can't expect the party to trust them when they don't trust us! Why should we?!"

He cut off his condemnation with a snap of his teeth, but still, no one tried to raise their voice to speak.

Well, almost no one.

I've always had a temper, and this man had raised it quite nicely. And I never thought rationally when angry.

"So that's it?" I shout back, and everyone's heads turn to me as fast as they can. I push myself off the pillar and start walking down the steps. "So I should hand you all the items I gathered, stuff I risked my life for because I'm a beta tester? Because some testers decided to up and leave? Look, I understand you're angry. I understand that not all beta testers are helpful, that some can be real bastards, but taking out your anger on all of them because some ran isn't going to help anyone."

I'm standing before him. I'm a little shorter than he is, but at the moment, I don't care. "But I'll say this right now. I'm not giving you shit. You can take my items after you've killed me."

The silence is so overbearing that I can't even hear the music from those NPCs from before. Kibaou's giving me such a death stare that it even unnerves me a little, but I stand my ground.

"May I speak?"

I raise my head, there was a silhouette moving forward and coming out from around the left end of the crowd.

This man is huge. I couldn't guess but he was taller then my grandpa, and he's 6'4. He had a rusty two-handed battle-axe slung over his back that seemed to add to his size. He had a completely bald head, and his skin was a chocolate color. He obviously wasn't Japanese.

Moving forward near fountain, the muscular giant lightly bowed to the other forty-odd players, and then turned to Kibaou and myself, who had a dramatically different height.

"My name is Agil. Kibaou, what you mean to say is that many beginners died because original beta testers did not take care of them, and that they should accept that responsibility and apologize along with giving reparations for it, is that correct?"

Kibaou stuttered. "That's...that's right." He takes a step back, but growls, looks at me with hatred and points at me.

"If they had not left us behind, 2000 people would not have had to die! Moreover, they were not just any 2000 people, most of them were top-ranked veterans from other MMOs! If these stupid testers had properly shared information, items and money, then there would have been 10 times as many people here right now... no, by now we would have broken through the 2nd or 3rd floor!"

"And what you fail to realize is that 300 of those dead are beta testers!" I growl back. On the inside I cringed. When Kirito told me about the numbers, I felt sick just knowing that a little less than half the people I worked with are now dead. "Just because we know the game doesn't mean we're invincible. Did it ever occur to you that maybe the game changed from the beta? That means we don't know if easy quests turned into death traps!"

Now whispers can be heard. Most likely from the information of dead testers I gave out. Even Kibaou seems a little shocked from hearing this from me.

"Where did you get this information?" Diabel asks, even he looks a little disturbed.

"A very reliable source. But I'm wasting people's time. Agil, please continue." I motion to him. He does so without a hitch.

"I don't know about the money and items, but I believe that there is in fact information from them." From the huge pouch on his leather armor-covered waist, he took out a simple sheepskin-bound book item. On the cover, there was a «Rat Mark» designed with round ears and three whiskers on each cheek.

"This guidebook, you got it too, right? It's freely distributed from the item shops in Horunka and Medai, after all."

"Yeah, I got it." One player says.

"Same here." This player pulls it out.

"I've got it too." Mako shouts from above.

"I got it. What about it?" Kibaou snaps.

"This guide, whenever I reach a new village or town, is always found in the item shop. You must have noticed that too. The information comes too quickly, don't you think?"

"So what if it's too quick!?"

"It means that the ones who provided the information on monsters and map data that appear in this cannot be anyone other than the original beta testers."

The chatting from the crowd began again, and Agil turns to face the crowd.

"You see, there is information. And even still, many players died. I think the reason for that is because they were veteran MMO players. They measured SAO with the same ruler as other titles, and missed points that they should have noticed. However, now is not the time to hunt down who is responsible for those casualties. Whether we are or aren't responsible, it will influence this meeting, is what I think."

His argument was extremely straightforward, and so Kibaou clenched his teeth as it seemed that he couldn't find any chink in what had been said. I smirked at the reaction, and he seemed to clench his teeth even harder.

Diabel gets between Agil, Kibaou, and myself, somehow. It almost seemed like he popped into existence right there. "Kibaou, I can also understand your point. I, too, went into fields without knowing left or right, and finally arrived here after many near deaths. But as Agil said, isn't it now the time to look forward? Even original beta testers...no, especially original testers, we need their fighting strength for this boss fight. If we removed them, and that resulted in the attack failing, what would be the point?"

"Contrary to what you think Kibaou, not all beta tester are evil. I've helped plenty of players during my travels, and I'm here, at a meeting discussing a strategy to take down the first floor boss. I'm here, with you, risking my life like you are. I'm not that different then the next player. I have some more experience, but that doesn't always garety safety or success. Maybe if you opened your mind a little more, you'd be a little more accepting." I say.

Diabel waited patiently for me to finish, then turned to the crowd. "Everyone, I'm sure you each have your own thoughts and feelings, but right now, I would like for you to cooperate to break through the first floor. If there are people who will not fight alongside original testers under any circumstance, then it is unfortunate, but you are free to leave. For a boss fight, teamwork is more important than anything else."

I nod in approval. Sweeping his gaze across everyone, the knight finally stared at Kibaou with a serious look. The cactus head swordsman took that gaze for a while, but made a huge snort and then spoke in a stifled voice.

"...Fine, I will obey you here. But I want it to be clear in black and white, that it is only up until the boss fight is over."

Kibaou retreated from the front of the group with his scale mail clinking, shoulder checking me in the process. I glanced at Agil and gave him a nod, while whispering a quick but sincere thank you. He nods back, but gives me a quick wink, a small grin on his face before he returns to his seat. I glance at the ground and shake my head, chuckling quietly to myself.

In the end, that scene was the highlight of the meeting. Said meeting seemed to only be to inform everyone of the boss room, and that once we found it, we'd discuss strategy.

Although the meeting lacked any real discussion, it still seemed to have boosted the players' morale, and the 20th floor of the First Floor Dungeon was mapped with unprecedented speed. On the afternoon of the day after the meeting, Saturday December 3rd, Diabel's party discovered huge double doors in the innermost depths of the dungeon. They had opened the door to take a look at the monster we would fight. At another meeting he described the beast, and it seemed to match that of the beta. They asked me to verify because of my status, and I confirmed this.

During this meeting, we actually temporarily paused it as all the participants purchased the guide book.

During the meeting, Diabel lowered his head as he seemed to think and consider something for several dozen seconds, but soon enough he quickly stood up straight and shouted in a voice filled with positivity.

"Everyone, right now, let's be thankful for this information!"

I half expected Kibaou to jump up and start something once more, but he stayed still. At least for the moment.

"Leaving aside its source, thanks to this guide, we can skip two or three days of scouting battles. Indeed, I think this is incredibly helpful. Because, scouting battles have the possibility of incurring the most deaths. If this is true, the boss's numerical stats are not so bad. If SAO was a normal MMO, then even if everyone's average level was level three... no, level five, that would be enough to kill it, I think. So, if we polish our tactics correctly and bring a lot of POTs to the fight, it's possible for us to defeat it without any deaths. No, sorry, not even that. There will be absolutely zero deaths. That, I promise you on my pride as a knight!"

The crowd cheered, and I had to smile. Diabel seemed to have this leadership thing down.

"Then, it's a bit fast, but I am thinking of starting the actual conquest strategy meeting right now! In any case, if we don't make a raid party, we cannot split up our duties, right? Everyone, first make a party with your friends or the people near you!"

"Okay. Mako, you in or out?" I send her a party request.

"You're an idiot." She say as she accepts. Her health bar and name appear on the top right corner of my vision just below my health bar. "Let's get Kirito and the girl in this too. He's looking a little lost." We both glance at Kirito, who seemed to forget that we were here and glances to and fro for a party member.

"Yo, Kirito! Remember us?" I smirk. "You didn't forget your roommates now did you?" Mako's the one to send the request since I'm too busy patronizing the boy. "Invite your girlfriend over too!"

"I'm not his girlfriend!" The nameless girl finally shouts back at me.

"She speaks!"

"Stop it Alto." Mako slaps my shoulder, just hard enough for the warning to show in my vision.

"Careful Mako. Hit me a little too hard." I give her a glance.

"Not my fault you're such a pansy."

"Oi! Not my fault this damn system can't take hits!"

Kirito's name appears below Mako's, and finally the unknown rapier user's name under his. Asuna.

Diabel checked over the seven completed 6-member parties, and with only the smallest number of switches, formed seven specialized parties out of them. Two heavy-armor Tank parties. Three high-mobility and high- firepower Attacker parties. And finally, two long-weapons Support parties. We were the only party that numbered four.

The knight came by our small group and after a moment lost in thought he made his decision.

"You four, please support Group E in order to make sure none of the Kobold Guards remain, okay? It's very important."

My face fell slightly. I should have expected this considering all things. Asuna doesn't seem very happy either, and looks ready to respond, but Kirito cuts her off, responding with a simple. "No problem."

"Important duty." She says sarcastically. "It will finish without us being able to land a single attack on the boss."

"Eh, I'm not complaining." Mako shrugged. "I'd like to survive and get out of this game."

"I'm a little put off." I say. "But whatever. Can't have em' all."

The second boss strategy meeting ended after a short greeting by the leaders of each group that were designated from A to G and the plan for how the col and item dropped in the Boss Battle would be divided was established. The giant ax user Agil was Tank Group B's leader, and Kibaou, who had a burning enmity for original beta testers, was Attacker Group E's leader. Since Group E's goal was to kill the Kobold Guards, it meant that the four of us would be assisting Kibaou. Now that's something I was against but didn't voice, since I wasn't sure if he'd leave me to die if the opportunity showed itself.

A day later, our raiding party of forty-six were making their way to the dungeon. Kirito seemed occupied by something since he seemed to stare into space while periodically glancing at Asuna for one reason or another. I think she knows since at one point she glares at him before harshly whispering, asking what was so interesting.

"Hey."

Hearing a voice that could hardly be called friendly from behind, I turned around to face Kibaou.

What does he want now?

"Listen here, today you should stay in the back. You guys are only here as support for my party."

"Mhhm." Mako mumbles. He doesn't seem very pleased with her response.

"Listen up, you guys should only take on the small fry Kobolds that slip past my party."

"Alright, we heard you the first time damn it." I respond.

He at least gives me a glare before spitting some virtual spit onto the ground for emphasis and turns around, returning to the other members of Group E.

"Son of a bitch, he just loves to repeat himself."

"Guys, you mind listening for a little?" Kirito asks. We all merely nod and step closer to him.

"Okay guys, today our opponents are the Ruin Kobold Sentinels, and even though they're small-fry that act as the boss' followers, they're still strong enemies. Like they roughly explained yesterday, a large portion of their head and body is tightly covered and protected by metal armor." Kirito explains to us.

"Their only weak spot is the throat." I add. I glance at Asuna. "From what Kirito told me, your skill Linear will come in handy here. When Kirito and Mako throw up their poleaxe, you and I will switch with them right after and finish them."

"Got it." The rapier user nods.

"Just stay vigilant and keep moving. Look out for each other, and everyone should come out of this alive."

* * *

The raid started off well enough.

Diabel was coordinating the battle very well. Group C, D, F, and G had all brought the boss's health to third layer which was already half way down. Group E and F had been busy keeping the Sentinels at bay, but we were taking them out so well that group F joined the main battle about half way through.

Our four man team was working well with each other. Kirito and Mako would attack head on, stun the Sentinel, and then Asuna and I would fly in right after and end them, each one erupting into shards of blue and white. Few ever got hits, and those that did died quickly.

One things for sure though; Kirito was not lying about Asuna's skills. I'm not sure how she's able to get that rapier to move so damn fast, or even aim the thing.

I can see the reasons why Kibaou wanted us back here. He knows about the item drop these little beasts give, and he had us back here so his group could get the kills, and therefore the items. Only problem was that our four man group was defeating them much faster than group E. And he couldn't exactly tell us anything now.

"I know what you're up to. Feels good, doesn't it?"

"What feels good?" I turn to the voice, once again Kibaou. The Sentinels had been dealt with and would respawn in another minute, but I'd rather not talk. Best not to be distracted, and I just don't feel like speaking to him.

"Don't pretend. I already know your motive for slipping into this boss raid."

"Aside from beating the boss in front of us?" I throw my arm out towards the boss, who gives a roar as if in emphasizing his presence. "How about you tell me what my motive is since you seem to know every damn thing about me? What, want to guess my age next? Maybe where I live? Do you want a cookie? No? Then get out of my face, and be ready. I have more important things to do than waste my breath speaking to you." I more or less push him back towards group E. He gives me a glare that's just as hateful as the first one he gave me, but he doesn't say anything and returns to his group.

"You two need a room."

"Oh, screw you Mako!"

Another roar caught all our attention.

Illfang the Kobold Lord's health was down to it's last bar.

Groups F and G were retreating after taking out the third HP gauge, and in their place the fully recovered Group C was rushing towards the boss. The party leader was the commander of the raid itself. They surrounded the boss in a wide circle, waiting for the animation to end so they could attack. The boss rid himself of his bone axe and buckler, throwing both at the same time before reaching for the in tattered cloth.

"I got this!" Diabel's call could be heard as he charged the boss. His group followed soon after.

 _'That wasn't part of the strategy.'_

The Kobold king pulled out its secondary weapon soon after.

But something was wrong.

Instead of the rough texture of a cast iron Talwar, I see the forged, polished steel of a Nodachi.

My eyes widen, and Kirito shouts. "No! Get out of there!"

The king's huge body shook the floor, as it jumped up high. It turned its body in mid-air, while accumulating power to its weapon. As it fell down, it used the accumulated power, releasing a crimson beam of light. A three hundred sixty degree horizontal attack.

The HP gauge that was displayed on the left side of our field of vision, showing Group C's average HP, immediately dropped below fifty percent and became dyed yellow. All of them. And the worst part was the yellow lights rotating around most of their heads, indicating they were stunned. Not a good thing when a boss was directly in front of you.

Strangest thing was that none of the other groups came to the rescue. Group E and our four man group were too far to reach them in time, but group F and G could jump in there. Even A could have came in. Instead, they stood in stunned silence. They couldn't believe that the fight had changed so dramatically from a rather lax battle to this. Agil and several other players tried to move in to support the others after a few seconds, but by than the king had recovered from his delay. Much too late.

The Kobold King had his sights on Diabel, who had the unfortunate luck to land right before him. It gripped it's nodachi in both its hands and moved away from its  
trajectory close to the floor and raised up high. It was aimed for the knight. Said knight in silver armor was sent flying high up into the air. The damage wasn't much. However, the Kobold Lord's movements didn't stop there. Diabel brandished his sword, trying to pull off a sword skill to counterattack, but due to his instability in the air, the system couldn't register.

The king let loose with a further strike followed by a thrust. A three hit strike; Hiōgi.

The bright colors and crashing sounds of the three consecutive hits showed that all the attacks were critical. He was blasted away 20 meters, over the heads of the raid members, and fell near our group. His HP gauge, which was already crimson, began to reduce further. He wasn't going to make it.

Near everyone froze once more, even Kirito. It was one thing for the situation to change, it was another for the leader to be the first to fall.

The pause was long enough for Illfang to recover from his delay to began his rampage again.

"Damn it!"

Illfang raised his sword to the right at an angle, preparing another sword skill. Gengetsu if I remember correctly. Group C was just recovering, and likely would take the damage.

The blade glowed red as the system registered, and flew forward.

Only to be blocked by a shield.

The sword was thrown back, and the shield then flew into the air, slamming into Illfang's face, causing him to stagger back. The shield then flew off to the left and into it's users hands.

Mine.

I'm running forward, trying to get to Group C.

"Group A, forward! Cover C's retreat! Group F, get ready to switch!"

None seem to question it. They seem to either be responding to the way I'm speaking, with such a commanding voice, or they're just following the next person to say something. Regardless, it doesn't matter. They respond in the manner that I need them to. Group A takes position in front of C while they recover, F taking position behind them, leaving a small gap between them for C to get by.

By the time Illfang recovers, group C had retreated to the back. Group A was now in front, myself included in the ranks.

"Don't surround it! Group B, behind F! Group D, behind B!"

Everyone did as they were told with no second thought. We had four files of players ready to take on this boss.

Illfang tried his previous attack, this one slamming into our shields. The violent vibrations are so much that I think my arm may fall off.

"Switch!"

Group A and I move back between gaps that F had left, with said group executing their attacks. Almost all made a hit, and the boss's fourth health bar dropped a good ten percent.

As I ran to join group B, a Sentinel jumped at me. My next move was on reflect. My shield came up to block it's strike, then I pushed it back. I positioned my shield to my side, reared back. The shield took on a green glow before I slammed it into the creature. The skill was called Bash, and did as it stated.

My sword flew at it's neck, and it shattered into blue shards.

"Group E, keep those damn Sentinels off us!" I screamed as I reached group B, joining their ranks. "Switch!"

Group B advanced before group F, covering them while their post motion ended. When Illfang landed another attack, we switched back, group D getting off their attacks.

"Come on, come on! Keep on the pressure! We can do this! Let's go!" I have to keep talking, make them see that I was confident in them. That they could finish this.

Each group was now switching with each other on reflex. As groups moved to cover the other, the others tended to themselves in the back of the column until they were back on the front.

It wasn't until Illfang was at ten percent health that things staggered a bit. Group A had gotten too close and he unleashed another three sixty degree attack. We bore it better than before, but it had caught the group behind us as well. Seven people were stunned.

Illfang threw another attack our way, aimed at a tank farther from the group. The man screamed as he saw the blade, but his life didn't end. I was before him in an instant, shield before me, bracing for the attack.

It was the same one it used on Diabel.

The first attack landed on the shield, but it still sent me into the air. The only thing I could do was curl up so that the shield could protect more of my body. This was followed by another strike and a thrust, each luckily landing on the shield. I was still blasted away however, and landing after flying twenty meters was still going to do damage.

"Alto!" I could hear Mako as I landed hard on the ground.

"I'm fine!" I shout back as I stand up, a decent pain now running up my back and my health down to fifty percent. I start running back to the raid party. "Kirito! Asuna! Take Illfang! I'll give you an opening! Mako, with me!" They all nod and take off to their respective paths. "Group B, cover A and F!"

When Mako and I reached the party, A and F were behind the others, with B taking the brunt of attacks.

"All groups, ten paces back! Stay in formation!" They did as they were told.

I lifted my arm that held the shield, and took in a very deep breath.

The world stopped completely for me. Everything ceased movement. Illfang was frozen in place, ready to move to another position to attack. Kirito and Asuna were right behind me, poised and ready. Mako was on my left, ax bared in a defensive posture.

My eyes focused onto Illfang himself, more specifically, his face. After a second, a green circle highlighted that body part, a yellow line from my shield connecting to the highlight.

I breathed out.

Time came back in full force. My arm released the shield, sending it flying at near unseeable speeds before it slammed directly into Illfang's snout. A loud ping could be heard as it connected, and he roared in either pain or irritation. My shield then returned to my hand, having bounced back.

"Go, go, go!"

Asuna and Kirito flew right past me, Asuna in front as she released a Linear on the boss's left flank. Kirito followed, his sword coated in blue light as it slashed across his right shoulder to his stomach.

He drew a "V" shaped trajectory along with the earlier slash, exiting from Illfang's left shoulder. A Vertical Arc.

The Kobold king's gigantic frame, suddenly losing its strength, staggered backwards. Its wolf-like face looked towards the ceiling, as it gave a thin and high howl. Over its body, numerous cracks noisily appeared, resounding with a snap and crackle. Both its hands went slack, and its nodachi fell to the floor. After that, the body of Aincrad's first floor's boss, Illfang the Kobold Lord shattered into millions of fragments, and scattered grandly in all directions.

No one moved, or possibly even breathed. I know I didn't. I was waiting for something, anything to go wrong. Maybe he'll just appear again, stronger than before. Maybe another boss would spawn to take his place. The room would be swarmed by Sentinels perhaps? I didn't know.

A message appeared in my view. The experience gained, distribution of col, and the items obtained.

I released the breath I was holding in, then fall onto my rear end. Everyone else must have gotten the message since faces brighten, and a second later, they cheered.

I wiped my face of sweat with my sleeve, willing to let a small smile appear on my face. Because even though we had ninety-nine levels to go, we had passed through the hardest obstacle on our way there. Many didn't think this game was beatable, that anyone could get higher than floor two, yet here we are, at that precipice.

Mako appeared before me, a big grin on her face as she offered me her hand. I accepted it and returned her smile. When I'm up nearly half the raid party surround me. They're all shouting over each other, but I make out words like, "Thank you!" and, "We did it!" I'm getting a lot of pats on the back and on top of my head. The man who I shielded earlier was in the mix and straight up embraced me.

Once we made it out of the mosh pit, Mako and I walked over to Asuna and Kirito, who was already joined by the dark skinned axe user Agil.

"Those were some fine swords skills." He was facing Kirito. He turned to face me when he heard my footsteps. "And you made excellent commands. Congrats, this victory is both of yours."

"No, this victory is yours. Without you guys this raid would have never taken place. Don't sell yourselves short." I reply.

"And modest too." Agil smiled.

"Why!"

Suddenly, that loud shout howled out behind me. I half-turned, and in response to that almost-scream-like shout, the cheering from the entire room calmed in an instant. Looking away from the four, I turned to see a man in light armor, a scimitar user, whose name I could not recall. However, as soon as his mouth parted and further disjointed words flowed from his lips.

"Why did you leave Diabel to die!"

I hear Kirito's body stiffen slightly. Then he responds. "Let him die...?"

"That's right! Because..." The player gives me a heated glare. "Because you knew the skills the boss used, didn't you! If you had given us that information from the start, Diabel wouldn't have died!"

The remaining raid members began to rumble. Things like "Now that you mention it..." and "Why...? It wasn't even written in the strategy guide..." were brought up and gradually spread. I half expected Kibaou to jump right in, but he just stood there, mouth shut, though it seemed he was trying very hard to keep it that way.

"I held nothing back." I respond. "I knew of Illfang's skills, but as I've said before, things could have changed from the beta. The only reason I recognized it's moves is that I fought another monster a few floors up during the beta that used them."

The tank I saved from group B spoke up. "Even so, the guide that was handed out yesterday, it was written that it was information on the boss's attack pattern only from the beta period like he said. His knowledge be the same as in the guide." His words had logic.

"That strategy guide was a lie. Argo's information shop was selling lies. That person was a beta tester after all, there's no way she would have given us the truth for free."

"And for what damn reason would she want to keep it to herself? If I remember correctly, she's stuck in here like the rest of us, and holding back on info of bosses would guarantee that we stay stuck. How does that help anyone? If all she was selling was lies, why were almost all the the skills and stats of Illfang near perfect before he pulled out the nodachi?" Again, more logic.

The scimitar user wasn't having it, and judging from the chatter, it seemed he had convinced at least a little less than half the raiding party. The scimitar user was walking briskly towards me, his fingers twitching.

"You killed him!" He spit when he came within a few meters, his hand reaching for his sword.

My shield was up, sword drawn and reared back. Mako was before me, ax raised, while Asuna and Kirito also took positions before me. I blinked in surprise at the speed which they had exhibited.

The scimitar user was immediately put off by the display. My guess is that he hadn't expected anyone to jump to my defense.

"Unbelievable." I mutter. "I helped you take on this boss, and now you accuse me holding information? Of killing someone? I just saved your lives!" Partial lie. Asuna and Kirito ended it, but I did keep everyone organized. "If I wasn't here, half of you'd be dead, and the raid would have failed! Don't start throwing bullshit at me!" I shake my head, sheathing my sword and placing my shield on my back. "I'm done. I'm activating the second floor transfer gate. You want to follow fine. If not, fine. I don't care." I wasn't in the light mood I was in a few minutes ago. These players had completely taken it out of me.

As I walked to the gate, I felt the gaze of everyone in the throne room on me. Some might have been simple glances, while others were heated glares. It didn't matter to me at the moment, or would at all.

I heard a pair of feet, tapping loudly on the ground in a run before they took position next to me and matched my speed. I turned to my left to find Mako. I actually raised an eyebrow at her.

"Don't think you'll get rid of me that easily." Was her only response.

My reaction was a quick twitch of my lip, showing I understood and appreciated it. We both walked in silence to the gate before pushing it open and leaving the throne room.

After climbing a narrow spiral staircase for a while, another door once again appeared. As I gently opened it, an absolutely amazing scenic view suddenly sprung into view. The door exited into the middle of some steep cliffs. A narrow staircase in the shape of a terrace extended downwards to the left along the rock face.

We didn't move for a moment, simply stating forward.

"So, what are you going to do?" I ask Mako.

"Seeing as how we work so well together, I was thinking of traveling with you." She replied evenly.

I turn to her. "You know that opens you up to being a target? Because you travel with a beta player?"

"And do I care? I just fought a boss. After doing that, you find it hard to really care what others think."

I smile as I stare at the flat top mountains. "Okay. You convinced me. Send me a friend request. That way we'll be able to communicate if we get separated."

"Alright." She quickly did as requested and I accepted.

"So what are we doing next?" She asked.

"Opening the teleport gate. People will hear of our raid, and a lot sooner than you think. We'll open that for them, then head off for some good quests. First thing's first though, I need a doctor. I'm out of health potions and kind of hurting after that last attack."

"It was painful just watching."

"Uh, my back still hurts after the landing. Damn it, I wish pain wasn't present in here."

"Okay, now you're complaining."

"Maybe. But you would too if I threw this shield at your back."

"Don't you dare. Alto? Alto! Put it down! Ah!"

"Ha, ha! Fooled ya!"

"You ass!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

"There we go." The small area flashed slightly before returning to normal. "All done."

"Great, now let's get going before they get the good stuff."

"Okay, okay. Geez, you're worse then my sisters."

"Sisters? Lucky." She pouted.

"Only child?"

"Yeah."

"Any reasoning?"

"No." She said defensively.

I raised my hands, yielding the point. "Okay. Forget I said anything."

"Sorry." She immediately replies.

"It's alright. I shouldn't have asked."

"Let's..." She motions with her head. "Let's just get out of here."

"Got it. Follow me, I know a good hunting spot." I start jogging, Mako following close behind. I can hear the teleport gate being activated, and we'll be seeing people here soon. We'll need to get as much XP as possible before players wipe out the surrounding area. We're heading southwest and spend a day getting experience before we head to a quest.

It takes a few minutes before we reach our destination; an open savanna. We can see buffalo type monsters in the distance, but those may be a bit too hard to go after now. Best start smaller.

"What is that thing!?" Mako literally jumps back.

What the two of us were staring at was a earthen black bee monsters with green stripes and an ice pick-sized stingers. It was around 50 centimeters in length, so it would be the largest insect in existence if it were reality.

The creature didn't seem to mind our presence, so long as we kept our distance. All it was doing was buzzing around.

"It's a Wind Wasp. This is the monster we'll be farming."

"Ugh! I hate bugs!"

My jaw almost dropped at that. What? "You're afraid of insects, but you just took down some weird demon creature less than half an hour ago?"

"That's different! Bugs like crawling all over things, and they crawl in garbage and on your skin and...ugh!" Mako shivered violently.

I roll my eyes. "Oh, quit being such a baby. You're not going to let it crawl on you, you're going to kill it. Won't killing it make you feel better?"

"Maybe?" She didn't seem very sure.

"Not maybe, yes. It will make you feel better. Because that's one less bug that crawls on you." She shivered again at the thought. "All you have to do is hit it. Hit it enough times, and it dies. When it dies, you kill another one."

"Okay, okay. I get it." She seemed a little irritated now since I was explaining things to her like a child. She pulled her axe and walked closer to the wasp.

"Weakness in its abdomen. It curls up to sting and opens it's mouth to bite. Five second delay for each."

"Got it." She twisted her hands on the haft of the axe when the wasp turned to her and buzzed angrily. Its body straightened as it opened its mandibles. It flew at her, though she avoided the attack easily. She swung the axe at its weak spot, and in that single swing, the wasp shattered into glass.

"Wow. That was a heck of alot easier than I expected."

I chuckle. "Good thing though is that they give fairly high XP."

"Was that intentional?" Mako asked as she checked the experience gained.

"I've no idea. We'll keep on killing them for today. Tomorrow we'll go to the south. There's a quest there that I really want." I point in said direction.

"Okay." She breaths, possibly feeling more at ease now that the monster is gone.

"Mind if I join?"

We both jump at the new voice behind us. We turn with raised weapons, only to find chestnut-like hair and hazel eyes, and a small smile, one I actually didn't think possible on her.

"Oh, it's only you." We lower our weapons and I breathe out sharply. "Damn it Asuna, don't scare us like that."

"You scare that easy?" She was smirking now. This was also new.

I give a grunt, then shoulder my weapon. "So what brings you here? I thought you were going to stay on the first floor for a little."

"After seeing how badly some of them reacted to you, I found I felt dirty just standing in the same room as them."

"Huh. What about Kirito?"

"He left after he announced he was a beta player."

I coughed and gave her a strange look. "That's...uh..."

"Why?" Mako says from behind me.

"I don't know." Asuna frowned. "He said he was a beta, left the party, and just...walked away."

"Maybe he was...I don't know...inspired?" Mako looks at me.

"I didn't do anything noteworthy."

"I mean when you weren't afraid to say you were a beta tester. Or that fact that you defended Agro when they accused the information without a second thought. Maybe Kirito just got inspired and finally said something." She shrugs.

"You knew he was a beta?" Asuna looked at Mako.

"Alto introduced us. Though he used another word when in public, so no one would make a connection."

"So, you wanted to join in on the farming?" I asked.

"Sure." Asuna noded.

"Than I hope you like bugs, because that's what we're farming."

She immediately dropped her smile, her eyes widening, and her body became stiff.

"Is...is that what she was..."

"Complaining about?"

"Yes. Yes it was." Mako finishes, groning.

"Too late to back down now. Now come on, you need to level up. When we've done that enough times, we can take on the non-insect monsters. So all the more for you two to pick up the pace."

They both nodded vigorously, fairly eagre to finish with the bugs and move onto the other beasts as they withdrew their weapons and began scouring the area for monsters. My only reaction is a chuckle as I follow.

* * *

"Damn it! Stop aiming for my back you little bastards!" I swat at one of the wasps as it dives on me, body curved and stinger forward. This one I dodge easily, then kill, only to drop on my knees as another flew at me from behind, zipping past me. Said wasp died from a lightning quick strike from Asuna.

"Why'd you have to mess with the nest Mako?!"

"I didn't see the damn thing!"

"It was hard to miss considering it's larger then your bloody head!"

"Screw you!"

"Guys! Maybe if we took care of the problem in front of us before you try beating each other!" Asuna cut in, lunging at another wasp.

"Yeah, yeah! On it!" I shout back as I toss my glowing shield and a foe, killing it before my shield returned to my hand.

"I want one of those!"

I at least give Mako a glare before parrying a sting from the front, only to get attacked on my rear. Now you'd expect that these little guys would have venom for something, but you'd be wrong. They did have a chance to paralyze you for five second if they attacked you from the rear though. My health didn't deplete much, and thankfully their paralysis they're known for didn't affect me. Still, I was sore from the boss fight, and their stings and bites just agitate it, which agitated me, and then I get on everyone's nerves.

"How many more!?" Asuna shouts. Immediately after she cries out when one wasp stings her in the stomach.

"I count eight! Just a little more!" Mako seemed to be faring worse than us since the wasps favored her after what she did. Her health was getting dangerously close to turning red.

"Don't die on us Mako!" I toss the shield at one that was gearing up for an attack on Mako from the rear.

"Thanks for the advice!" She released a whirlwind attack, cutting down three in one go.

"Nice!"

"Four more!"

"Make that three!" Asuna called as another wasp shattered.

"Two!" One from me.

"One!" Mako shouted again, another wasp shattering.

"Last one's mine!" I scream as it charges. As it closes in, I rear my sword back as I hold my shield in front of me. The sword takes on a blue glow before I lunge forward, covering the two remaining meters between us quickly. When I reach the wasp, the sword digs into its abdomen, but before the the creature shatters, my body spins, my shield striking the wasp, which then shatters.

"That was a little overkill." Mako said.

"Eh. Just one time. I'm not making it a habit." I say as I sheathed my sword and placed my shield on my back. "Now, did you disturb more nests?"

"I said I was sorry!" Mako shouts back.

"Well," Asuna speaks, trying to break the argument. "At least we got more XP than we would have."

"True. True." I nod. Mako seems to calm down since she loses some tension in her body. "Let's head back to town. It's getting dark, and I'd rather not be caught in the dark against these buffalo type creatures."

"What's so bad about them?" Asuna.

"They're strong. Some can even be considered mini bosses in terms of difficulty. And they won't stop chasing you until you're dead, it's dead, or you reach a safe zone. I've had to do both when fighting them. Most of it came down to running though."

"Ah." Mako made a weird noise. "T-then let's get going."

"Don't need to tell me twice." I grunt as we make our way out of the small mini forest we had found ourselves in. The town's only a few minutes, and that's good. Like I said before, I don't want to deal with those crazed cows.

"Ah!"

All three of us pause, first taking a glance at each other and, after confirming it wasn't any of us, looked to our right. You couldn't see anything unusual, but that scream came from that direction. We were just behind a small hill, so the likely theory was that they were on the other side.

"You hear that right?" Asuna asked.

"Let's go!" I respond and take off in that direction.

"Alto! Damn it!" I hear Mako curse before two pairs of feet are running behind me. We make it over quickly and find the source of the scream.

Two players, one male, one female, were trying to defend themselves from a five meter tall behemoth of a cow.

"Son of a whore!" Of course it was a Trembling Cow. The ones I said were treated like mini bosses.

Now I could do one of two things: I could help them or walk away. Personally, I was leaning a little more towards walking away. A dick move, I know, but I didn't feel like dealing with a monster of this magnitude. Mako didn't have anymore healing potions and was in the low yellow, Asuna wasn't much better, and I only had one potion on me, with health that had just started getting into the yellow. My virtues won out however. I couldn't just let them die.

"Mako, Asuna, stick behind me. Don't try to attack the thing, okay? Not unless I tell you to."

They merely noded before we pulled our weapons. We sprinted forward, raising my shield and tossing it at the Trembling Cow, which took the hit in the face. It groaned in agitation.

"You two!" I point to the players. "Get the hell out of here! Get to town! Now!"

They didn't question, and took off as fast as their legs could carry them. The cow didn't chase after them though, because her attention was on us.

"Ah, damn. Run!"

I tossed the shield once more as Asuna and Mako began running, this time aiming for one of it's legs as it began to charge. The shield struck it's legs hard, and a yellow light lit up above it's head as it tumbled to the ground. I had stunned her.

I wasted no time catching up with the others. We would have a few seconds of a head start, and we needed to take advantage of that. These things could close the distance quickly.

It was a good thing we were close to town, because by the time the cow was closing in, we were just a dozen meters away from the town, with the two players just entering the town, with other players either staring at the commotion or running back into town at the sight of the monster cow behind us.

"Get back to town!" Asuna shouted at the top of her lungs as the _[INNER AREA]_ sign lit up in our vision. We come to a stop quickly, looking at the Trembling Cow that was now stomping around like crazy on the outskirts of the town, apparently angry that it couldn't get us. Seeing as any other players weren't in sight or were in the safe zone, the cow gave a huff before turning it's back on us and charging back to the plains.

"Ah." I breath. "Whew... That was close."

"Aye yaye yaye." Was Mako's response. Asuna just gave a huff.

"Okay." I turn to the two players we had rescued, who were currently sitting on the floor, breathing heavily. "You two alright?"

"We're...we're fine." The girl said.

"Thank...thank god you...were there." The boy said next, looking at us. "If you hadn't been there...we would have..."

"Died." I state rather bluntly.

"Y-yeah."

"How can we repay you?" The girl asks.

"Well," I start. "I wouldn't mind a drink."

"Wait, that's it?" Both players look at me like I'm crazy.

"Yeah. Why?" I raise an eyebrow in question.

"We...we were expecting something like money, o-or items. Something."

"In a game like this? No. I'm not cruel. All I ask is you treat me and my two companions to a drink and it's settled. Done. Repaid." I smile slightly.

"Where have you been all my life?" I hear the girl mutter as she fixes her hair. I just give a laugh.

"You just didn't look in the right places. Now come on." I offer both of them each hand. They accept it, and I quite literally throw them back to their feet. The boy almost eats it and Asuna has to grab his shoulders to stop him.

"Uh, t-thanks."

* * *

It was really quiet in here.

When we neared the local tavern, you could hear talking and celebration. Probably for the successful boss raid. That changed when we came through the door.

When I came through the door, everyone turned to see who it was. Once they caught sight of me, all noise ceased. All eyes were one me, and I took the time to look around the tavern. Most I hadn't seen in my life, but a few I recognized, most from the recent boss raid. Some looked on with silent awe, while others showed contempt in their eyes. None said a thing. I think everyone in the raid group had gone about telling everyone else about the boss battle.

"Please." I say bluntly as I spread my arms slightly. "Take a picture. It'll last longer." I then roll my eyes and walk deeper into the building, spotting an empty table on the far end of the tavern. My words seem to snap everyone out of their trance. They all seem to shake their heads before giving me one more look and returning to their earlier actions.

"Idiots." I mumble as I take a seat, my four companions following suit. An NPC quickly came and set about giving us our drinks.

"What was that all about?" The girl asked.

"They've just never seen someone so good looking before." There's no hint of loftiness from before in my tone as I mumble into my mug.

"They've just never seen a beta tester before." Mako comments while glaring at the people still staring. "What are you gawking at?"

"You're a beta tester?" The boy looks at me in awe.

"Yup. Though I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not."

I reply.

"I'd say bad considering everything I've heard from people." The girl says.

"Let me guess; we abandoned everyone and look out for only ourselves, right?" I deadpan and give her a rather bored look.

"Pretty much."

"Hm. No surprise. They'll keep saying that for as long as we stay here, and beyond then."

"So, who are you two?" Asuna asked.

"Well, my name's Neo. This here is my sister Hita." He motions to the girl next to him. "Not our real names obviously."

"Oh, siblings. Well, nice to meet you. The name's Alto. This here is Mako and Asuna respectively." I motion to the girls, with Mako giving a small wave and Asuna a nod. "You guys mind telling me what made you think you could take on a mini-boss?"

"We didn't think it be so large." Hita grumbled as she looked to her left.

"We didn't charge it like idiots. We were trying to see if we could take it, but it charged us way before we got close." Neo replies.

"Those monsters have a long range. If you enter it, they know you're there and attack until you die, or it does."

"We found that out the hard way."

"Least you're alive to learn from it." Mako now.

"Yeah."

"So, how'd you guys end up here?" I ask.

"Where, here?" Neo asks.

"I think he means _here_." Hita glances at her brother.

"Oh."

"My brother here stood in line for days to get this game. He somehow scrounged up the money to get two NerveGears and convinced me to join him. It sounded appealing, truth be told. A game where everything looked and felt real."

"But then we were trapped in here." Neo looked down at the table. "And I just _had_ to convince my sister then."

"You need to stop that. Just because I decided to join you doesn't make you responsible for this."

"She's right." Asuna and Mako say in union.

"The only person you need to blame is Kayaba. That bastard is the one who did this." I state simply.

"Yeah..." Neo didn't seem convinced.

"So what about you guys? How'd you end up _here_?" Hita asked.

"I won this game and a set of NerveGear through a contest. That contest was also the reason I was a beta player. Came with the prize." I reply. "Mako?"

"Hmph." She starts. "A friend of mine let me try out her game when I was over at her house. She wanted me to get a feel before she took over. Zip ide doda, and here I am. Kind of glad it's me in here and not her though." Mako looks out a window. "I don't think she'd survive. Asuna?"

"The game was my brothers'." She sighs. "He had to leave for work and couldn't play. I got curious and decided to try it out. Hence, I'm here, and a little green when it comes to MMOs since this is my first one."

"Really?" I turn to her. "The way you were handling yourself during the raid said otherwise."

"I just got lucky."

"Mhm. Yeah. Lucky." I mumble into my drink, clearly not convinced.

"This was my first too." Hita sighed. "Hell of a way to start. But Nobuyuki's been helping me."

"Oh, so that's his name."

Hita's eyes widen slightly, then she looks at her brother. "Sorry."

"It's alright."

"Where you guys from?"

"Kawaguchi." They reply.

"Oh, not too far from me. I'm from Niiza. Mako, Asuna, what about you two?"

"Wako." Mako.

"Setagaya."

"What about family?"

"You ask a lot of questions. You know that?" Mako gave me a sideways glance.

"What, it's just friendly conversation. I want to get to know them better. That's alright with you guys right?" I actually attempt to give them a face that would resemble what a dog would make to convince someone. Both siblings laugh in response.

"It's fine." Neo says, smiling.

"Here, since Mako said something, start us off."

She gives mana glare. "I'm an only child living with my parents."

"I have two younger sisters. And two dogs." I say next.

"I have an older brother." Asuna.

"Neo's my baby brother." Hita.

"I hate it when you say that."

"But it's true." She pats his head. "You'll always be the baby, no matter how old you are."

"You sound just like my mom." I say.

"She's just like our dad." Neo stated dejectedly.

"Oh, quit being such a baby." Hita slapped his shoulder. He groans and and slams his head on the table.

"Don't hurt yourself." Mako said through her smile. I was chuckling.

"Screw you guys."

* * *

"Oh man, what a day."

"You're telling me. We beat a floor boss, clear a wasp nest, save some players from a mini-boss. By far the most interesting day yet." I throw myself onto the couch in the living room.

After having our drinks in the tavern, we all decided to bunk together for the night. I had found an NPC who was renting out a portion of his home to travelers, and it was cheaper than paying for separate rooms in the inn. One of us would be sleeping on the couch though, which I decided before hand would be me.

"Are you sure you want the couch?" Hita asked once more. "One of us can-"

"Nope. I'll be fine. I've slept in safe zones before, and even out of those. This couch is just fine." I wish she'd stop asking. It gets a little annoying when you ask five to six times. "Mako, please don't-"

"If you say _'run into a wasp nest'_ , I'm going to stab you in the eye."

"What? No. I would never." I say dramatically, a smirk on my face. Her response is to give me the bird.

"That's why you guys were there?"

"Yup. Guess that was lucky of her to run into a wasp nest."

"Damn it Alto." She growls from behind her room door.

"Go to sleep Mako." I chuckle. She sticks her tongue at me in response before closing the door.

"She's weird." I say.

"You sure it's safe to annoy her that much? She has an axe."

"Ah, I'll be fine. She's harmless, at least to me."

"Uh!" Her muffled groan could've heard through the door.

"Alrighty then. Night everyone." Hita announced as she made her way to her room.

"Night." I settle myself into the couch, getting as comfortable as one could in one. Once in a desired position, I opened my menu. I wouldn't go to sleep until I was satisfied with every item I had.

I went through medical items first, finding I had at least one health potion. I'll have to get some more. My weapons were next, checking the integrity and such on all of them: my two swords and the shield. The shield, from what I could tell now, was either very durable or straight up indestructible. Everything on it was a hundred percent. I'd have to find out later.

Last was my armor. My clothes were relatively fine. My armor itself was just above sixty percent. Not surprising since it did take a fall damage from the boss earlier. I'd get that done as soon as possible.

And after five minutes of contemplating it...

Maybe now.

I'm a paranoid, need-to-get-it-done-now kind of guy. I was in the real world, and that's not changing anytime soon.

"Ah." I groan as I pick myself back up and equip my items. I head over to Mako's door and give it a knock.

"Mako? You awake?" I ask in a low voice. It's a minute before she opens the door.

"Yeah. Why?" She raises an eyebrow.

"I'm just letting you know I'm going into town. I need to stick up on some items."

She stares at me for a good ten second before walking out of her room. "I'm coming with. Might as well get my stuff done too. Let's just let Asuna know."

After she tells Asuna where we're headed to, we exit the house and head into town. The little house the were staying at was a little out of town, on it's own plantation. Sugar cane and apples. It was a ten minute walk to town.

"So were you as paranoid as I was for items?" Mako asks.

"Yup. Probably more so. I need more potions, and I need to repair my equipment. I just had to get it done now."

"Well, that's not a bad thing. We probably should have just brought everyone with us I say." Mako nods at the market.

"Ah well. We'll have to bring them here before they get going tomorrow."

We quickly got what we needed done. My potions were now up to ten, as was Mako, and we find a blacksmith to repair our weapons and armor back to a hundred percent.

"There we go. Good as new. That's more like it." I say as I look down my blade.

"You know you can't tell the difference right?" Mako laughs slightly.

"Yeah, but I'm a do it anyways."

"Help!" I hear a voice in the distance.

"What the hell's up with our timing with these things?" Mako asks before we both bolt towards the person who's shouting. A little dude who looks ten, but might be older. He sees us responding at runs to us.

"Please! You have to help me!"

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"My brother! He's been attacked by a Trembling Bull! He led it away from me! Please!"

"Take us there! Now!"

He nods and books it, Mako and I following close behind. We pass through the town quickly and into the fields, though this area also has clusters of trees littered around it.

Mako and I are looking in all directions, trying to find a sign of the kid's brother. He's also looking, but seems to know the general direction of where they took to.

After another minute, he stops completely. We pass him up since we weren't expecting it. When we stop we turn to him.

"Kid? What's wrong?" I look at his face. He has his eyes close, but his lips are in a tight frown. When he opens them again, I see...regret? Guilt?

"I'm sorry." He says before he takes off to the direction we came from.

"What?" Mako frowns in question.

"Shit. Mako, weapons out." I tell her as I draw my sword and shield. She does the same.

In the cluster of trees we're near, we see a silhouette of a person, then another, and another, and another. They already have weapons drawn, and start walking around us, two for both Mako and myself.

"It's you again." I recognize the scimitar user in the group, from the boss raid. It's rather obvious why he's here with his friends. "So you found yourself a posse."

"Rather obvious isn't it," He glances at Mako. "She's free to leave. My quarrel is with you, not her."

"You have another thing coming if you think I'll leave Alto to fend for himself." She growls in response.

The scimitar user sighs. "If you want to die with him, that's just fine!" He charges, his three friends following suit.

Mako and I get two opponents each, with the scimitar user out for my blood. He's putting as much force into his blow as he can, but my shield is taking it without a problem. I want to deal with the knife user who's trying to get around me.

After one of his more ferocious attacks, I use a simple slash and slam my shield into him, knocking him to the floor a few meters away. With him out of the way, I concentrate on the knife user, who's moving around quite nimbly. I thrust my sword at her once, and she dodges it easily. That attack is actually enough of an opening for her to dance around to my left and slash me. The only problem for her is that my heals drops to ninety-five percent.

She looks startled at the revelation, and if I were one to judge, she was a few levels lower then I was, which would explain the low damage. She takes a glance at me, while I raise a tired eyebrow, as if saying, _'Really?'_ In response, I attack her, slashing her twice in an X before using the shield to push her back. When she falls to the floor, she drops her weapon and just lies there while covering her head, waiting for my next attack.

I look over to Mako, who has already dispatched her opponents. Both were on the ground face first, weapons out of reach, all covering their heads. Their health was in the red, but she's not poised to attack again, only to defend if they get back up.

"Well, that was interesting." Mako comments as she steps closer to her former foes, who in turn become tense. "Want to try it again?"

"No! No!" One of them say.

"W-we give up!" The dagger user says next.

"Idiots." I say next. "You're lucky we didn't kill you. That we don't like doing th-"

A red light fills my vision, then a burning pain on my chest that makes me cry out. The scimitar user used a slash attack on me while I wasn't looking, and his did some damage. My health was now at seventy-three percent.

He prepared another attack, this at Mako. She was preparing to charge him, but my body moved on it's own. My shield in front, sword reared behind me. They took a glow before I was launched forward towards the scimitar user. He had just enough time to see me close the distance before my sword buried itself into his chest.

He gave a pained and surprised gasp, quite possibly not expecting this to happen. And for a split second, the world freezes. It's only me and the scimitar user. I can see his face: the pain, the shock, the anger, the betrayal. But the most prominent is fear. Because he know's what happens next. What I do and what happens to him.

I realize that a little too late.

The sword rips its way out of his chest as I spin, and this elects a cry from him. But it's silenced when my shield comes back around, slamming into him.

And then he shatters.

We all watch as the crystal shards fly high into the sky, and before six seconds, they all disappear. Leaving no trace of the man who once stood here.

I don't know what the others are thinking, but only one thing crosses my mind.

 _'I've taken a life.'_

 _..._

 _'I've just killed a man.'_

 _'I...'_

"Get your weapons and get out of here! Go on! Get!"

I hear Mako shout, presumably at the other three. I don't see them leave though. I'm too busy staring at the place a young man use to stand. There wasn't a trace of him anywhere. Not the ground, the air. No body, blood, clothes, weapons, items. It was as if he hadn't been there just a minute ago, that maybe he wasn't there at all.

As if he hadn't existed.

Nothing...

"Alto? Alto? Come on, answer me."

I take a look at Mako, who has worry painted on her face. She sees something wrong with me, but judging by her face and body, she's not too sure on what to do.

"Are you okay?"

I stare at her for a moment, then look back at the place the man once stood, a window before me, telling me the items I had gained from the kill.

That was the only evidence of a person standing in front of me.

"I...I don't know."

This didn't ease her concern. She takes my shoulder and gently drags me in front of her before leading me away.

"Let's get back to the house."

I don't remember walking to the house. The only bit I remember is Asuna meeting us at the door, talking to Mako about where we've been. I don't listen though, and just walk past them in a daze to the couch, numly removing my armor and weapons before quietly getting comfortable.

"Alto? Are you okay?" Mako asks again.

"I'll...mmm...let you know tomorrow."

They leave it alone, but I'm sure they'll touch on it later.

Truth be told, I'm not sure how to feel about it. I'm numb, but...I don't have a feeling. Or maybe I do but can't come up with the words for it. If I could describe it I feel...I don't know, nothing. That's a feeling right? Nothing?

Maybe I'll feel something tomorrow.

...

...

...

I don't like feeling numb.

* * *

 **I've made it where if you do kill players you gain only get the weapons of the player they slayed, so it depends on how many weapons they carry. They don't get EXP from player kills though.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

"I already told you, I'm fine. Nothing wrong with me." I say for what feels like the hundredth time that day.

At the moment we were in the road, headed through the mountains to that quest I wanted. Asuna, Mako, even Neo and Hita had joined us on the little journey, though I think they'll be leaving after this.

Mako and Asuna have been asking me if I felt alright since the moment I opened my eyes. And it was starting to get real damn annoying. I was fine, good to go, no problems. It should bug me that I did kill someone, but when I woke up this morning I didn't feel any different. I felt like me.

"That's not normal though." Mako voices. "You should feel something, anything after that."

"But I don't. I feel like myself. Simple as that. Now please, shut up about that. After the sixteenth time you said that, it getting on my nerves." I growl a little to empathize my point.

"Mako, let's just leave him be." Asuna had given in before Mako had, but she was just as worried.

Mako let out a sigh, grumbling out an "Alright." It's silent for the most part, no one speaking. Neo and Hita haven't said anything for the most part, having asked once or twice before leaving me be.

That's still something that's a little strange to me; that I killed someone and am okay with it. Or maybe not. I'm not sure. Maybe this will come back to haunt me later in life; I'd make a bet that it would. Maybe this is just my way of coping. To just ignore it.

No one says anything for a good while, simply content to gaze at the scenery around us. The mountain pass we were traveling did have some truly beautiful sites. I think my favorite was the small creek with the twin twisting waterfall. I'll have to take a better look at it when I'm done with the quest.

It's a good hour before we reach our destination; a small hut, the roof made of straw and the walls a dirty looking grey, with smoke rising from the center. An old male NPC was sitting in the chair, as if waiting for us, which I guess he was.

"I'm here for the martial arts skill." I tell the NPC.

The man nods, silently standing and motioning for us to follow as he swiftly leads us behind the hut.

He leads us to a plain looking rock 2 meters high with a diameter of about 1.5 meters. The old man motioned to the rock, then made another motion with his hand, palm open and pushing it down. He then puts his hands together, and splits them apart. The last thing he does his pull a small jar of red paint. He dips his finger into it and proceeds to dab my face, painting three lines on each side of my face, mimicking whiskers. He leaves without a sound.

"Did you catch that Alto?" Mako stared blankly at the man's back.

"In order to get the skill, I have to split this rock in half with my bare hands." I point to my face. "He painted whiskers on my face and they don't come off until I complete the quest."

"And how long is that going to take?" Asuna voices.

"I'm not sure. Maybe a few days. I've heard that the rock may be as strong as an immortal object."

"Oi!" Mako.

"What?!" Asuna.

"I didn't think we'd be here that long!" Hita.

"Wha?!" Neo.

"Oh, calm down guys. If you don't want to wait, leave me. I'll finish the quest myself, and come looking for you guys afterwards." I crack my fingers as I make my way to the rock. Hopefully the pain wouldn't have an impact on this quest.

"Well, that would defeat the purpose of joining you now, would it?" Mako says as she plops on the ground cross legged. The others just follow suit, though they look a little more depressed then Mako.

I look down at the rock before me, inwardly groaning. I did this quest in the beta, and it took two days for me to complete it. If anything, I hope it's stayed the same. I raise my hand chest level, palm pointed downward, before forcing down with a grunt. My hand impacts the stone hard, my arm shaking on contact, but the rock stays solid, and my hand doesn't hurt.

I breath I sigh of relief; at the very least I could do this with only fatigue being the only problem to face.

"That doesn't hurt?" Mako asks. I saw her wince when my hand made contact.

"The pain is null. Maybe it was like that originally. Either way, it doesn't hurt." I reply as I force my hand down on the stone again, eliciting the same results. "Thank god for that, or this would literally be the worst thing ever."

"We can think a of few others." All four of my companions say in union.

For the most part, it was stare at Alto day. All four of them would either stare at me silently, talk to me while starring, talk to each other, or wander off a bit or otherwise keeping themselves occupied while I failed at breaking the stone. They even catch a nap, which is something I'd like to do after hour eight, but if I do, we might be here longer. So I kept trucking along, well into the night.

Bam!

"Alto?"

Bam!

"Alto?"

Bam!

"Alto, can you hear me?"

Bam!

Slap!

My body moves with the slap, more out of fatigue than anything else. I grab my face and glare.

"Ow! Damn it, that hurt! What the hell?!"

Asuna merely rolled her eyes, poking my chest hard. "You need to sleep."

"Okay, just give me another hour or two." I reply, preparing to strike the stone again. But she easily catches my arm on the the downstroke.

"I mean it Alto. You'll work yourself to death for this quest." She glares.

"I'm not going to die doing this." I glare weakly back at her.

She groans, tightening her grip on my arm as she drags me away from the stone. "Why are boys so stubborn?"

At this point I don't bother resisting. She had the advantage here, since I had been at it for awhile, around eleven o'clock in the morning. Now was around one in the morning. I'm actually surprised Asuna is still awake.

"Come on Asuna. I don't-"

"Shut up Alto." She pushes me against the wall of the hut. I don't have the energy to do much, so I hit the wall and slide down to the ground. I look around to find the rest of our companions on the ground, sound asleep. Mako was on my right, a blanket over her, curled up in a ball. Neo and Hita are sleeping on their stomachs, with Hita on top of her brother, a blanket covering them as well.

I give a small chuckle, looking at Asuna. Maybe it's my drouzznies, but I've noticed something.

"How long have we known each other?"

"What?" Asuna stares blankly at me.

"How long have we known each other?"

"Um," she seems flustered for some reason. "I don't know. A few days? Why?"

I gave her another look, in my mind making her a few inches shorter, adding black hair instead of orange-brown chestnut, and brown eyes.

"You remind me a lot of my sister."

"R-really?" That seemed to make her even more flustered.

"Yeah. Just make you a little shorter, black hair and brown eyes and wala; my sister. You even talk to me like she would." I chuckle.

...

...

"What's your sister like?" Asuna asks.

"She quiet around strangers, but loud around friends and family. Huh, we shared so many of the same interests when we were children. Still do, but we've wandered off in our own directions. We still very close though. Very. When we were children she was my best friend, always there for me, listening to me, helping me. We haven't really lost that bond. We might not show it outright, but we do love each other."

"And your other sister?" Asuna sat next to me.

"She was born a few years afterwards. When she came, my sister and I were in elementary. In a sad way, she kind of became a third wheel at times. She hadn't been there when we were younger, so it was harder for her to relate to us like my other sister and me. Before all this, she was really starting to get involved. She likes my sister more then me, which is understandable considering gender, but..."

I gave a tired sigh, running my hands through my hair, a sad expression on my face.

"I wonder what they're doing right now... I bet my mom's visiting me in the hospital they no doubt put me in every week. My dad too, and my sisters. They're talking to me too, about what's gone on in the last month. And when they leave, they'll cry...because they don't know if I'll survive this..." I shake my head. I don't need this running through my mind. "Anyway, enough about me. What about your siblings? I remember you mentioning an older brother before."

"Hm?" She seems to have snapped out of some trance. "Oh, my brother. There wasn't much to tell really." She shrugs.

"Oh come on, there has to be more to it than that." I ask.

"I mean it." She says finally. "He's a few years older than me, so we didn't bond like you and your sister. We kind of just...stayed out of each other's ways. Don't get me wrong, I love him, but we just aren't close."

"And your parents?"

"They're in the same boat. Though it has more to do about suitors."

"Suiters? They're trying to get rid of you already?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Yes. They're determined to get me married. I've already seen three. Turned all of them down." She frowns. "I don't know why they keep persisting. They were going to introduce me to one more before I got stuck here."

"And you have no idea who they are?"

"No. I don't." She sits next to me.

"Well that must suck. My parent's would never force me to do something like that. But that begs the question; why?"

"Who knows? They won't tell me."

"Ah, cheer up." I turn to her, placing my two index fingers on the edges of her lips and raising them to a forced smile. "Turn that frown upside down."

"You're an idiot." She says unamused, but her smile and small chuckle gives her away.

"But you can't deny my charms."

"You're ridiculous is what I don't deny."

"Oh." I purposely puff my cheeks. "You're mean."

"How does anyone put up with you?" She asks with a smirk.

"You'd be surprised. You're still putting up with me." I point out. She rolls her eyes, but nods in agreement.

We stay quiet for a minute, both of us just staring into the sky, watching the stars we could see. The third floor was miles above our heads.

"Alto?" Asuna calls.

"Yes?"

"How are you always so cheery? So full of excitement and such?" She turns to me. "We're stuck in a virtual world where death can be just around the corner, separated from friends and family, and yet you seem happy. That this is okay. How are you like that?"

I continued to stare into the sky, not responding instantly. I wasn't expecting this whatsoever. Maybe it's understandable though. Most people don't get me anyway.

"It's because I have to."

"You have to?"

"Yes." I say softly, turning to her. "If I only thought of what I had lost, what I could lose because of this game, I'd of gone insane ages ago. I would have gone insane before this game, before moving to Japan. I use to live in the US, and for a rather large portion of my life there, my family was barely scraping by. I'd go days without eating; we were always worried that we'd wake one day and find that we'd been evicted from our house. I knew more about this than my sisters did, and it was a very stressful time in my life. I was always worried something terrible was going to happen, but I had something that kept me going; hope. That things would get better. And so I was determined to make sure my family was okay. I couldn't work obviously, but just being the way I was, a happy-go-lucky child, always helped lift everyone's spirits. And it kept us together through those hard times. Even after the fact, now that my father is the CEO's assistant of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, one of the largest banks in the world, I've kept that attitude. It's helped me get through some rough patches in my life, and I can help others by letting them forgetting about their troubles. And helping people is something to strive for, because sometimes the smallest things can help them, and that, well, that brings me happiness. It's something for me, and it tells me I can make a difference. Little old me, a normal fourteen year old boy, can help someone, can change someone's life. And that's always been enough for me."

Asuna was staring at me, lips slightly parted, eyes looking right at mine. It looked like she was trying to see who this new person was. She was soaking in the words is seemed.

"You..." She paused, then smiled softly. "Are an amazing person, Alto."

My face was split with a smile. "Thank you, Asuna."

It wasn't until half an hour later that Asuna finally succumbed to sleep. When I was sure she would stay that way, I returned to my previous action; attempting to split the stone.

It was another two hours until it finally split. When it did, I laughed, and decided that the floor next to the split stone was a good enough bed for today.


	6. Chapter 6

**Don't own Sword Art Online**

* * *

"Watch it, watch it."

"I know, I see it."

"Ow! Damn it! Stop stinging me you bastards!"

"Ah!"

"Block with your sword Asuna, not your face!"

"Oh, shut up!"

"Get! Away! From me! Already!"

"Ninety-one and counting guys! I'm winning that bet!"

"Oh no you don't! Eighty-nine! I'm right behind you!"

"I'm not out of it yet!"

Here we are again, in the fields outside of Urbus hunting Wind Wasps for XP and Wind Wasp needles, two days after I had achieved the Martial Arts skill.

Neo and Hita had left our party, telling us that they were going to keep looking for other friends they knew were in the game. We had them on our friends list, and we had said our goodbyes. Asuna, Mako, and I had been farming the wasps ever since, though we did do a few quests. We received a root of some sort, a slightly better sword than my current one, and a blacksmith hammer. So far, we've been farming, but during the off times, I'm learning a new skill I just recently received. Blacksmithing; the ability to craft and upgrade metal weapons and armor. This would really come in handy for many reasons.

"One hundred, bitches!"

"Damn it Alto!" Mako yells. Asuna doesn't make a sound, though she really looks disappointed.

"Look, don't sweat it guys. I'm not going to force you to pay for a Trembling Shortcake. We'll all pay for it."

"And that's better how?" Asuna raises an eyebrow.

"Well, you get a piece of it. How about that?" I respond, eyebrow also raised.

Asuna's tone changes immediately, as does Mako's disposition.

"Yeah, that shut you up mighty quick. Now let's get back to town. After we eat we can upgrade our weapons with the materials we have."

They both agreed, possibly for the cake or just because they were tired of hunting wasps. I would have stayed there another hour of it wasn't for my stomach. Maybe we'll come back later.

It's not long before we reach Urbus. We follow Asuna to a small restaurant she had discovered, though purchased the information for it was more accurate. Of course, she thought I would pay for all of it. Now we all are, but she shouldn't be too disappointed.

We had a simple meal; a type of stew and some bread, paid for by Asuna, before the Tremble Shortcake was brought out.

"So how'd you really find this place Asuna?" I ask. "Did you smell the cream or..."

Said girl gave me a glare so heated that I quickly changed my tone.

"Of course it wasn't the cream. Maybe the bread or something." I hear Mako laugh, and Asuna just smiles sweetly before digging into the cake.

By the time we finished the shortcake and left the restaurant, darkness covered the sky. Many players were still about though, so best to take advantage of what I could, especially since the shortcake gave me a Lucky Award Bonus. In basic terms it gave me more ' _Luck'_ in terms actions I did. Blacksmithing benefited from that.

I quickly make my way to the main square, not wasting any time setting up shop next to the inn. I withdrew the item Vendor's Carpet and laid it on the ground and began withdrawing other items; an anvil, a portable furnace, a few tools, and a sign with the words _"Alto's Blacksmith Shop"_ on it, as well as the prices for what I could do, which at the moment was strengthening, crafting and creating normal armor and weapons. To a certain extent anyway. I'd need a bigger portable furnace once we get higher in the game but I'd have to purchase a forgery later after that.

"Okay. Mako, you have anything you want to upgrade?"

"The sword. Here." She materialized her one-handed steel sword to me, then sent me the necessary materials to enhance the weapon.

"Hello."

I glanced up to the voice, finding a young boy that's probably my age, wearing the same clothes most people start out with when beginning the game, though he had a bronze chest piece.

"I'll get it after this man Mako. Evening. How can I help you?" I bow.

"I'd like to enhance my weapon to +4. I've brought my own materials."

"All right. The number of materials please."

"The maximum. Four steel ingots and sixteen Trembling Horns."

"Oh, wow, how'd you get those?" I ask as he hands me the sword.

"I paid an arm and a leg for it. I'm trying to get as strong as possible, but I won't be fighting in the frontline for a while." He responds while he passes me the materials and col for the work.

"Eh, I would have waited. Farmed the area and such." I switch the furnace to strengthening mode, the type of strengthening, and poured the materials into it, sword lying on a brazier-like object inside. The items soon glowed bright red with heat, and soon, a darker red flashed inside the furnace, this color indicating durability. The color dyed the blade soon after.

I immediately remove the weapon onto my anvil, my iron blacksmith hammer in hand and lift it into the air before I bring it down.

 _'Ten strikes in three minutes.'_ I think to myself. I can't do this too fast, but not too slow either. I should be fine however.

 **CLANG!**

 **CLANG!**

 **CLANG!**

Within the end of around forty seconds, the straight sword on the anvil shone for a moment. And a moment later, it glows brighter for a split second before turning back to its original color. A ringing sound was heard, and I release a sigh of relief. I apprise the weapon to make sure it succeeded.

"And here we are, Steel Sword +4." I return the sword into its sheath and hand it back to the young man.

"Thanks a bunch man." He returns it to his waist and turns back to me. He squirms a bit for some reason, then leans in closer, a hand half cupping his face.

"I know this is rude, but are you a beta tester?"

I blink, obviously not expecting the question. I answer him truthfully however. "Yes. What gave it away?"

"The name." He points at my sign. "You're all everyone's talked about for the last few days; Alto, the tester that practically saved the raiding party."

"People make such a big deal out of it. Someone else would have done the same thing if I wasn't there anyway." I rub the back of my head.

"Give yourself some credit Alto." Asuna states simply.

"You're too modest for your own good." Mako adds.

"Maybe." I don't take praise well, especially if everyone keeps doing so for one thing. My usual response was to deflect it, and maybe blush a little, which I might be doing right now.

"The point is you were the one to take charge. You saved lives. What I don't get is that everyone seems split on praising you or screaming for your head." The boy says.

"Yeah, that'll tend to happen."

"I might be asking a lot, but do you mind giving me some pointers on the game?" He says while looking around.

"Farm regularly and hunt for quest as quickly as possible. Make sure your equipment is in tip-top shape and carry a lot of potions. I see you use a shield like I do, so I can tell you with all certainty that you need to stop the attack before your foe can make it."

"You can do that? How?" He asks.

"When you see an opponent prepare to attack, make note of their movements. They always have to prepare for said attack, always have to position themselves. If they have a weapon, you want to get close and stop the weapon before the swing with the shield. It'll force the attack to abort and you can attack for however long the delay lasts. Monsters without weapons are a little harder but it's the same concept. Stop them before the attack, and you'll have that window."

"Wow. I never thought of doing it that way." He says while I return my weapons to my back.

"Also, if you want it," I motion for him to get closer. "If you head towards the southern edge of the floor, in the mountains is a quest for a skill. Martial Arts."

"Really?" The young man looks at me with wide eyes.

"Yeah. I'm warning you though, it may take a few days to finish it."

"Wow." He blinks. "Thanks. This...this means a lot, really."

"No problem dude." He puts his hand before me and we shake. "And I'd like your name."

"Oni."

"It was very nice meeting you Oni. Maybe I'll see you on the frontlines sometime soon."

"Maybe. I'll see you."

"Later Oni." I wave as he starts jogging towards the south, likely towards the mountains I mentioned.

"You know how bad you'll make business if you give quest locations away wily-nily?"

Asuna and Mako jump at the voice and spot the person next to me, seemingly having appeared from thin air.

"Oh come on Argo. It's only one more person. By the way," I give her a look, spotting the whiskers she was known for. "The quest, or just to keep up _'The Rat'_ persona?"

"It'll cost you to know which." That means she's not telling.

"Aw, can't I get it for free? I am a friend after all."

"Nope."

"Eh, I tried." I grin. "Well, is there something you need? I doubt you'd come to me specifically to just stop me."

"I can't just say hi?" She says in her nasally voice.

"I don't know. You are a rather tricky one. If it's a job though, I'm willing to do it, for the right price obviously."

"I'll keep that in mind." Argo replies sarcastically as she sends a friend request. After I accept, she starts to walk away. "Expect a message when we reach the third floor. See ya."

"Argo."

She stops, turning back to face me.

"Stay safe. Okay?" My voice was soft, the lofteness now gone.

She gives me a once over, then looks me in the eye. Her own soften soon after, and she responds with the same softness as mine held.

"You too Alto." She turns and walks away, disappearing into the crowd.

"Your sword Mako."

"How's you meet her?" Said girl asks as she passes me her sword.

"Through Kirito actually. We happened to run into her during the Beta. She got herself into some trouble with a field boss and we had to get her out. She was not...happy. Fighting isn't her thing. She's the information broker we all know her to be. She leaves the fighting to the others." I grinned as I began slamming my hammer on the weapon. "Even as friends I can't get a discount from her, but some of the info she has is well worth the price. And once in awhile she'll, mm, let something slip, completely accidental by the way."

"You two seem close." Asuna noticed the look the info broker gave me.

"Believe it or not, we've met once outside of the game. It was completely random. I was getting groceries and just so happened to bump into her. She was similar to me when it came to our avatars, so we looked the same as we do now. We scared the hell out of each other but it was good. We spoke quite a bit and just went on our way." It was probably the most anime thing to do really. When we met we slammed into each other and everything went flying every which way. Thankfully, unlike most animes, I didn't end up on top of her or grabbing something or even getting a glance at anything inappropriate. Strangely enough that one real world meeting somehow made us better friends. Merely talking for an hour in IRL made us seek out the other at times or send messages to each other when we had something to talk about during the beta. Maybe it was the fact that we found things that interested the both of us and we didn't have to hide anything from the other.

"We were planning on meeting again a week after the beginning of SAO but you know what happened there." I add while handing Mako her sword and taking Asuns's rapier. "Get ready to hand me your armor too. We're getting everything done now." We were going to get as prepared as possible before the next boss raid.

And hopefully after everything, I can meet everyone in IRL.

* * *

 **As you can see I changed the weapon and armor specific forging into Blacksmithing. It always bugged me that everything was split like that while other MMO's don't do that. So anyone with Blacksmithing can make any metal weapons or armor.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Don't own SAO.**

* * *

"You guys ready?"

"Ready." Both of my companions respond in union.

"Okay. Aaaaaaaand..."

"MOOOO!"

"OOHH!"

"Now!"

Asuna, Mako and I immediately launch ourselves from our hiding spot and towards the narrow basin that held the second floor field boss Bullbous Bow, the boss currently preoccupied by two parties that were beginning to attack. I hadn't joined because Kibaou was part of the group, and by the looks of it, he had his own party, likely with little love of testers. The other party was led by a man I didn't recognize, so it was best to assume the same for him. So we were going to take advantage of the distracted field boss by simply sprinting right by while they attacked. We'd be hours ahead of most players, since Kibaou and the other party would have to return to town and stock up on supplies and repair equipment.

It was possible to bypass a field boss if the party was small enough, but only four people were allowed to do so. If a fifth tried it, the boss would automatically target them. This little known fact would only be true until the tenth floor, where an invisible wall would make it impossible. So best take advantage when you can.

Bullbous Bow had charged one tank, slamming head on, though the shield held and the user was pushed back ten meters. The other party members took the opportunity to attack the boss's exposed rear. It was at this moment that we ran right past everyone, but they were so occupied that no one noticed us as we ran down the basin. At the back of said basin was a narrow, winding valley, with sheer cliffs on each side. We didn't need to worry about monster in this little area, and we made our way unopposed.

The sight we see after we exit the narrow valley is different than the rest of the floor. The terrain of the two to three story table mountains did not change, but unlike the pastures of the northern fields, the ground was covered by a dense jungle. The mountain sides were all covered with Climbing Plants as well, and a heavy fog seemed to linger, making visibility very poor. The one thing you could easily distinguish was the extending vertically from the next floor, hundreds of meters in the sky, reaching down to touch this floor. The second floor's dungeon tower.

"Here we are. There's a town at the base of the dungeon. It might take us a little to find because of the jungle though. So let's get going. Open any chests you spot and watch for cow type monsters."

"Got it." Mako says.

"Right." Is Asuna's reply.

Bu...Mooooo!"

No one makes a sound as we all leap in different directions, a hammer coming down where we were just standing, sparks sent flying every direction.

The monster wielding the hammer had a body that was mostly human, though the head was that of a cow. It was wearing nothing but a piece of cloth around its waist.

Asuna was the first to react, charging in faster than myself or Mako could see. Her blade pierced the monster's chest twice in quick succession.

The monster shook violently, then began falling backwards, emitting a defining death scream as it glowed and shattered.

Asuna stands there afterwards, staring at the spot the monster use to stand before turning to me.

"That wasn't a cow."

"Well, the head was. That's gotta count for something."

"It's more like a Minotaur." Mako replies.

"Well, it is the second floor's theme. Though I don't know where giant wasps fit into that."

We pick ourselves up and begin walking to the town.

It's rather uneventful, the entire journey. We make it to the town and start for the dungeon. Best to take advantage of the monster drops and mapping the area out for the col later.

"I don't get why the Minotaur's have to be nearly naked." Considering how Asuna was raised I guess something like that is new to her. Going to an all girls' school and being just as rich as I am. I smirked at her comment, an idea making it's way into my head. Going through my inventory I found the item I was looking for and equip it. A light bathed my body and my two female companions turn to look at me. The light dies very quickly.

"What the hell?! Alto!" Asuna screamed, recoiling back, face red and baring her teeth. Mako's face also goes red and she actually gasps before showing me her back, hand over her mouth and her shoulders shaking slightly.

The armor I equiped was something I received after killing one of the many Minotaurs here, something called Mighty Straps of Leather. My own current armor had better stats, but equipping this armor set left me looking like many of the Minotaurs. Strategically placed straps crisscrossed my naked chest, as if acting as convenient censoring. My pants were gone, a strip of cloth covering my nether regions.

"What's wrong Asuna? There's nothing wrong with admiring my awesome male body." I struck a provocative pose. Both girls lose it in different ways. Mako literally starts barking with laughter while Asuna aims her rapier at me as if preparing to attack. She let out a small scream of anger.

"Well if it doesn't look good on me why don't you wear it?"

There was an immediate pain as Asuna slammed a fist against the back of my head.

"Idiot! I'm not wearing that!" She was about ready to beat me senseless while Mako kept laughing. "Take it off now!"

"Okay! Okay!" I was laughing myself as I equipped my previous armor.

The the end of hour four, multiple treasure chests, and a little more than a dozen monsters, we head for back to Talan with our inventories full to bursting and a nearly complete map, though the boss room eluted us.

After we sold our loot, I send a message to Argo, letting her know I have a nearly completed map and that I would pass it along free of charge. We all needed it if we wanted to get out of this death game after all.

"You guys hungry? I'll pay." Mako offers.

"Sure." Asuna says.

"I'll take up your offer. But we're going to a pub for that. Argo agreed to meet me there for the map we just made."

"Oh, good. I need to ask her something anyways." Mako says with a strange glint in her eye. I wasn't liking that.

We make it to the pub in no time, which was hidden away at the far end of the town, situated between two NPC building that weren't important. Almost no one would come here.

The pub is small, only enough to hold about twenty patrons and is devoid of life, save for the NPC bartender and the lone hooded figure sitting at the counter.

"Argo." I say.

"Hi again." She replies as we take our seats. "So you had a map for me?"

Yup. Here ya go." I hand her the map.

"All righty. You'll be seeing this in the next issue of the guide." She stored the item before turning to me. "Is there anything else you need?"

"I have something to ask." Mako says.

"Lay it on me."

"Do you know of anything important on the third floor that our friend Alto doesn't know of?" She asks.

I grunt a little while bringing a mug to my face. Not exactly what I was expecting her to ask. But what was with that glint in her eye earlier?

"Hm." Argo puts a hand under her chin. "Nothing worth paying for. Alto," she turns to me. "Anything we should know?"

"Quest for a sword at the northern edge of the map, some small money quests littered everywhere, escort or somesuch if I remember correctly. Oh, and a boss that inhabits a mountain pass that gives some rather useless but very valuable loot. That's about it."

"I'm not aware of the boss." Argo frowns. I smirk.

"Losing your touch now, are we?"

"Hardly, but it's demeaning to know you know more than I do. Tell me about the boss quest."

"I expect payment for this." I state simply.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard ya the first time." She sneers. "I need the funds though. I don't have too much col."

"So put it on my tab. It's going to be more though."

"You are brutal, you know that?" Mako elbows my ribs.

"Tell me about it." Argo says under her breath, but she smiles slightly. "But you need to remember Alto. You owe me for that save back during the beta on floor six. Or did you forget?"

"Ah, damn. I was hoping you would." I smile back. "Oh fine. No payment for this one."

"Good, now tell me the info."

"The boss is an elf. A dark elf named Fen'harel. He wields two double bladed daggers, and they're longer than most I've seen. He moves damn fast and is prone to knockdown or disarming attacks. He does standard dagger attacks until he's at half health. He get's faster, and can blend with the environment after he takes out the lighting. He drops herbs that can make four rather high level potions, but I doubt anyone has that skill set at the moment. Best to sell if you ask me."

"What if I got the skill?"

My eyes dart to her. "You sure? That's taking a skill where something more valuable could be had."

"It's not the end of the world. Besides, if you're worried about funds, we can farm herbs, make the potions, and sell them for less than the NPC vendors." Her words had a healthy dose of logic.

"If that's what you want."

"All righty then. And how many times does the boss spawn?" Argo.

"If I remember, about five times. Maybe a little more, but less than ten, I'm sure."

"Okay." She writes this down on a scroll and stores in her inventory. "I'll be seeing you Alto. Later guys." She waves, than stands and exits the pub.

"I'm actually surprised that's all you asked for Mako." I turn to face her. "I was expecting something more."

"What made you think that?" She asks.

"Eh." I shrug. Maybe I was imagining things.


	8. Chapter 8

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

"So good to see you again Kibaou."

Said young man glanced at me, glaring daggers. He didn't reply though.

"What? Nothing stupid to say now? After all the shit I heard last time? That's it?" He remains silent, but he looks like he's having trouble trying to keep it.

"Hmph." I have no problem with his silence. It's better than listening to his idiotic arguments.

Five more days had passed and finally, we were going to take down the second floor boss. We were standing right outside the boss room, making sure everyone was in tip-top shape. This boss room was going to be a little tougher than the many on the first few floors. This one was what I called a duel-boss. There were two, though the support boss had less health then the main. It would be best to take him down first of possible.

The organization wasn't as solid as the last. They made sure we had the numbers, but they were just now sorting the groups out. Seven groups of six was what they were aiming for, like last time. Only difference was that they were all full.

"Alto!"

"Oni? Is that you?" The blond haired boy with bronze armor, shield, and upgraded sword ran to our group, which consisted of Asuna, Mako, Kirito, myself, and one man I didn't recognize.

"Surprised?" Oni asks.

"Yeah! I wasn't expecting to see you in this raid."

"Neither was I. I was farming for days to reach the level I thought was high enough for this. Upgraded my armor and now I'm here."

"First boss raid?" Mako asks. "If so, you're in for tough one."

"Yeah. Two bosses this time." Oni replies.

"Ugh. Hopefully that's the same, but I'd bet that something's changed." I say. I can't be sure if anything with Nato or Baran is different now. "You heard Kirito's warnings about the consecutive attacks, yes?"

"Yeah. I'll be sure to stay clear of those."

"That's all anyone can ask."

"Okay people!" The man Lindin shouted to the entire group. "Everyone should be in their designated groups. If you don't have one, tell me now." No voices replied. Lindin nodded. "Okay. Get ready people. We'll be entering the boss room now. Just do your jobs, and he should get out of this in one peace."

"That's what Debeal said." I heard a hushed whisper say. Lindin, Kibaou, and many of the players I knew from the first raid snapped their heads into the direction they had heard the sentence. No one made any movement or gave away that it was them who said it, so a second later gazes shifted downward, at their feet. Debal may have been a beta tester, but many seemed to treat him with respect, even in death. Other testers weren't given the lictury. I was split down the middle. Some respect me, and some plain hate me, while a few are desperate enough to try and kill me.

The doors of the boss room opened wide, showing a room that was similar in size to the first floor boss room. The decor was a contrast to the sparkling blue, yellow, and other bright colors that was the first floor boss room. This one has mostly black, dark green, and brown colors, with a design in the walls that mimicked a labyrinth. And right ahead were the two second floor bosses.

Baran the General Taurus, and Nato the Colonel Taurus.

Baran's rippling muscles were enveloped in a bristly, crimson red pelt. Its waist was covered with a luxurious golden cloth, but his upper half was bare. Additionally, a golden chain dangled over its shoulder, and the taurus wielded a golden battle hammer that shone with a dazzling brilliance.

Nato was like a body double of Baran. Nato was a blue-skinned, bull-headed beast with shining black horns, hooves that were as big as buckets and a bare upper body. The sub-boss was 2.5 metres tall, half the size of Baran, and wielded a two-handed hammer.

"Forward!" On the command we all charge.

Our raiding party split; Groups A through D went after Baran while Groups E through G charged Nato.

Nato immediately went after me, myself in front of the entire group. The only thing I could do was raise my shield as the hammer came down on me. It forced the ground beneath me to crumble, slamming me to my back and my shield against my chest, bringing my health down to around seventy percent.

I was a good distraction though. Asuna and Mako launched an attack, Mako coming low with Asuna going for the crown. Nato staggered backwards as someone grabbed me dragged me away.

"Come on man!" Oni shouted. "Shake it off!" I take it to heart, standing shakily but giving myself a quick shake before joining the fight once again.

The good thing about these bosses is the fact that they don't have minions to help them. Sure, the minions in the first boss battle were jokes, but with two bosses to contend with, it would have been much more difficult. Both groups are doing a really good job at the moment. Most have experience from the previous boss raid while the newest members were following the more experienced players. Suffice to say that it was going extremely well, though I was waiting for something to go wrong, just like everything went wrong during the first time. If that does happen, I hope no one dies. I was always with the groups that worked as tanks because of my shield. It could take much more damage than anyone else's The others of my group were attackers. The other groups didn't mind that I joined them, even if they hated me. I'd show in the previous raid that I was good, better than many players, so they let me be to help.

By the end of an half an hour both bosses were down to the last bar, with Baran's health still in the green while Nato was in the low yellow region.

Nato prepares for another Numbing Impact but doesn't release it when Oni used his shield and pushed back the bosses weapon arm, forcing Nato out of his attack. He immediately lands a hit on the beast's horns. He staggers like the other many times, his health lowering more.

"Everyone attack now!" Kirito shouts as he charges the boss. Everyone facing Nato immediately followed, intent on finishing the boss. The players who can reach attack his horns while the others get any part of the body they could reach. With all three groups attacking at once, Nato's last quarter filled health bar depleted to nothing quickly. He gave a groan before shattering to pieces. With Nato gone, our groups ran to help the rest of the raid party with Baran, Asuna leading the charge, gliding through the air like a missile and attacking him from behind.

Surrounded on both sides, the General Taurus was having difficulty trying to keep himself protected and retaliate. He was holding out much better than Nato, keeping himself from moving unless necessary and attacking only if he thought he could get away without damage. However, he was slowly losing health despite everything.

Baran was just reaching the near reaching the red zone, I was moving with one of the tank groups, when a hand grabbed my arm and tugged on me. I turn to find a whiskered face staring at me, breathing heavily, worry engraved on it. She looked out of her element.

"Argo? What the hell are you doing here? I'm a little busy at the moment." I was still moving with the group.

"I know, but I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important!" She yelled over the sounds of battle.

"Quickly than! Spit it out!"

We heard a roar. Before us, Baran had just lost the last of his HP, Mako having just recovered from her attack that took out the boss. He shattered just the same as Nato but that wasn't what caught my attention.

It was the deep intake of breath behind me.

The beast had legs as thick as tree trunks. His waist was covered with sturdy, dark chainmail, though the upper half of its body was bare. The taurus's head was that of a bull, but with six horns instead of two, that had a twisted beard hanging down to its stomach, and a round, silvery platinum crown atop the centre of its head. His body was black, as if painted with ink. The boss was armed with a massive hammer twice the size of Baran's.

Asterius the Taurus King.

' _Oh no…'_

His chest was puffed up, his eyes glowing in malice, electricity sparking from his nose. He was ready to attack.

"Watch out!" I slammed my shield on the ground just in front of me, grabbing and pulling Argo behind me to shield her. Almost a second too late.

He released, lightning shooting across the room and slamming into the ground just before us. It splintered into more, spreading across the ground, impacting people left and right. It slammed into my shield, but was absorbed into it, keeping myself and Argo safe. The other people around us weren't as lucky. Their health dropped, but what was more worrying was the lightning sign next to their health bars, indicating paralysis effect. Most of my group was caught in the blast, including Kirito, Asuna, Mako, and Oni.

Asterius roared, seemingly pleased at the effect his attack made on the raid party before moving forward.

"Argo, help get these guys out of here. I have to distract the boss. Tell them what you've found on the boss." I glared at the third boss.

Argo gives my arm a squeeze. "Be careful." She took off for the nearest player.

I toss my shield at Asterius's crown, but he brings his hammer up and deflects it with ease, sending it back to my hands. I growl as he stomps the ground when I get close, preparing to use Numbing Detonation. I toss the shield again, knowing he can't defend himself during his pre motion. It strikes his crown, He staggers, unable to complete the attack, and I start going for his legs, maybe to see if I can slow him down. He moves to attack after a short six seconds, scoring a hit on my shield. My arm hurts, like when I was defending that tank back during the first boss raid.

He fires off another lightning charged breath my direction, myself using the same skill to neutralize the paralysis effect and dissipating it into the ground around me.

The Taurus King roars in anger, Numbing Detonation slamming into the ground. I jumped as the hammer struck to avoid the stun effect while I was thrown away from the blowback. When I landed, he immediately attacked. His first strike landed on my shield. His hammer changed direction quickly, leaving me with no time to use the shield, so I parried the weapon, nearly losing my grip on the sword. I tossed the shield again, stunning him, causing him to stagger a few steps back, bending forward just enough to reach his crown with my sword. Sonic Leap did the job, and like always, I put all the power I could muster into the attack to do the most damage I could do. The attack threw him back, but the stagger did not happen. He attacked once more with Numbing Detonation and I was too close to dodge. I raised my shield as he slammed it right on top of me. The attack did just what Nato's first attack did to me; slam me to the ground. The stun still didn't effect me, but my health dropped to seventy percent. I roll back to my feet and have to parry the hammer coming my way.

And my sword shattered on contact.

"Shit!" Of all the things that could happen, my sword has to break on me. I had another one, but I'd never be able to summon it with Asterius attacking and myself distracting him alone.

I backed up, tossing the shield at his horns once more. He swatted it away in the opposite direction. I wasn't getting it back anytime soon. He charged me, seeing me defenseless.

I took a stance; feet spread, my left arm before me, my right reared back, both cupped into fists. When the King reached me, my right fist flew forward, meeting his hammer on its way to me. The blow threw the hammer out wide, allowing me to use another Martial Arts skill. I spread my legs to my sides, my arms tucked into my body. I leaped forward, landing a kick on the boss's chest, then immediately land two quick but powerful strikes in the same area that pushed him back. _Toripurusutoraiku_ was basicly what it said; a three hit combo. The post motion was similar to the starting position to another martial art skill. It required a little tweaking but I was able to launch _Asutoroidosutoraiku_ , a powerful single strike that required a little space between me and the target before I was launched at the King, pushing him back.

The only bad thing was that I was too close to him, and my post motion pause was long enough for Asterius to use another Numbing Detonation. This one I was unable to dodge or block.

I screamed in pain as the lightning traveled through me, the backblast of the attack throwing me backwards, rolling me a few times before I came to a stop a few feet away on my stomach.

I'm able to raise my head just enough to spot Asterius preparing another breath of lightning. I wouldn't be able to dodge this one either and my health was down to around twenty percent. I wouldn't survive the next move.

' _Huh.'_ I thought to myself, surprised by how calm I was feeling. ' _Didn't think I'd die this early in the game. Or die at all really.'_

"Alto!"

Asterius was cut off when a two-handed ax slammed into his gut.

"Over here you beast!" Mako screamed as she unleashed another attack, now joined by two groups of party members. I was grabbed by the shoulders and dragged back away from battle.

"Idiot. Thinking you can take Asterius with Martial Arts alone." Argo shoved a health potion into my mouth. My health began to slowly rise.

"Was worth a shot." I grin weakly.

"Alto! Catch!" Mako was behind the group now, holding my shield, then tossed it to me. It landed near my feet. I gave her a wave in thanks. She gave a sharp nod and continued with the rest of the raid party. I lift myself to a sitting position.

"Woah there death wish. You're not done healing yet." Argo kept a firm grip on my shoulders, but allowed me to sit.

"Potions need to work faster." I say as I equip my second sword and take my shield back. I watch my health bar slowly rise and once it hits eighty, I stand. Argo doesn't stop me and I run to the party as Argo stays behind.

"Thanks for the save." I tell Mako when I reach her.

"Thank me when we finish the boss." She glared at me. I wilted slightly.

"Got it." I take position with Oni to my right.

"You alright man? Took a beating there. Thought we'd lose you." He eyes me.

"I'm fine." I glance at him. "Ready for another lesson?"

"Talk to me." He's on it, that's good.

I raise my shield up and angled slightly to my left, sword raised, pointing over my shoulder. "Stance used to defend. Enemy attacks, shield slides weapon off for a glancing blow, immediate attack afterward." I demonstrate quickly. "You'll be using this stance with me. We'll be the tanks."

"Got it." He nods.

Asterius struck at the group, stunning the current attackers. When he attacks again, Oni and I jump forward, shields taking the brunt of the attack. Most of it was directed to Oni, who used the tactic I just taught him, letting the weapon slide off his shield as we both attack, staggering him. The tanks behind us move forward as we fallback, throwing their own attacks while the boss is still stunned, then move to a defensive position.

Everyone was back in action, adjusted to the sight of the new boss. The fact that now one has died yet helps keep moral high for the most part. When Asterius prepares for his lightning breath, I stagger him with my shield to his crown. I don't want to have to distract him a second time if I can help it.

When Asterius was on his last legs, my group was up, relieving the group before when one took a bad hit. We were going to finish the boss.

Kirito and Oni were the first to charge in, Oni taking the hit while Kirito attacked. They fell back for Mako and Asuna, Mako tanking the attack and Asuna attacking.

"Mako! Blunt attack when I say!" I yell. She turns to me, question on her face, but her words die on her lips when she sees me charging her. When I'm about a meter away from her I jump. "Now!"

She knows what I mean by now, though she nearly doesn't do it. She slams the face of the axe into my foot, myself losing a small portion of health while being sent flying high above the boss. I toss the shield once more, slamming into his back, forcing him forward.

I'm able to get a stance in the air; one for Sonic Leap. The mover registered to my luck, and I'm sent soaring down to the boss's horns throwing as much strength into the move as I can to bring the most damage to the beast as possible. I slice through the horns easily and am moving fast enough that I crater the ground slightly when I land.

And then Asterius the Taurus King gives a loud, agonized roar, and shatters into pieces.

The ' _Congratulations!'_ sign shows up before us, and everyone cheers. Everyone except me. I'm still on the ground, looking at the ceiling, breathing a little harder than normal. I was just as happy as everyone else, but I was exhausted. The window before me told me I had the last attack bonus, so I accepted the item. It was a one handed sword called Arcanum. I've no idea if that's a name or a word. After I take a look at it and store it in my sheath, I stand. Mako it next to me already and proceeds to punch my arm hard.

"Ow!"

"You're an idiot." She deadpanned.

I don't bother arguing with her because even though I was one of the few who could distract the boss, I did trying doing so with Martial Arts at the end. We hear footsteps behind me and we find Lindin and Kibaou walking to us. They stopped a foot away from me, staring at me. Kibaou didn't look happy to be here, while Lindin remained stoc. He raised his right hand to me. I took it, and we shook.

"You saved many lives today Alto. Thank you." His face was still the same but his voice conveyed all his feelings. Kibaou remained silent, but gave me a nod. I just nodded back.

Both of them leave us shortly after with Asuna joining us.

"That got a little hectic quickly." She comments, looking at me.

"Tell me about it. Thought I was dead back there for a second." I turn to Mako. "Again, thanks for the save."

"Well I couldn't let you die." She crossed her arms and sticks her nose up, smirking slightly. "I have my reputation on the line."

"Oh, you evil women." I shake my head and smirk back at her. Asuna shook her head and laughed. She turned her head slightly to Kirito, who was talking to Oni about something. Whatever it was they were really into it.

"Guys, I think this is where I say goodbye." Myself and Mako give her a surprised look.

"What do you mean?" Mako asked.

"Yah, what's up?" I say next.

"I think I'll be traveling with Kirito for a little." Asuna finally answered.

"Oh I see." I smirk again.

She immediately backpedals. "It's not like that!"

"I don't know. You've been sneaking glances at him all day before the boss fight."

"I hate you." She growls, face now red.

"I think it's love and hate. Otherwise you wouldn't allow me to tease you so." I smiled now. "In all seriousness though, what have you the thought?"

"I'm not entirely sure." She looks at Kirito again. "He just looks...really lonely. I think he needs a companion, and I'm one of the few who'd be willing or even allowed to do so. He doesn't seem like a people person."

"Trust me he isn't. When we first met, he was always quiet. I was the one who couldn't shut up around him, but if you catch his interest, he'll open up nicely. But what caused you to think like this?"

"A friend of mine. One who said his job was to try and make people happy by being the person he is today."

My eyes widen a lot at the comment. I was at a loss for words. Mako doesn't know what Asuna's talking about but gets that I'm deeply affected by it. Asuna turns back to me and gives me one of the warmest smiles I've seen. And it makes me smile too.

"Well," I start. "Never thought I'd be someone's role model." It felt really nice though. I motion to Kirito. "Come on. I'll butter him up for ya."

When I reach the boy, I throw my arms around his neck from behind. "Hiya there!"

Kirito near jumps out of his clothes when I do this. He tries struggling out of my grip, but it's futile. He has his hands on my arm. "What are you doing?"

"I promised to butter you up, so here I am." I turn him to the side. "Look who want's to be your new traveling partner!"

"Asuna?"

"Hey Kirito." She waves and smiles innocently. She's likely laughing inside at how embarrassed Kirito is right now.

"So are you going to accept? Come on, why wouldn't you? Look at her, with her hopeful eyes and bright smile. You wouldn't want that smile to be a frown and those eyes filled with tears now, would you?" I already knew I had him. It was real easy to guilt trip him.

From behind me I hear Mako stifle a laugh while Asuna plays along, trying to make herself look even more adorable than before. He breaks.

"O-of course you can travel with me." He sends her a party invite and she accepts.

"There we go. Now," I release Kirito's neck and grab on shoulder while the other grabs Asuna's. "We'll need to lay down some ground rules."

"Ground rules?" They say in union.

"Yes. Kirito, always be respectful to Asuna. Don't try to sneak peaks if she's in a revealing position, and just don't be an idiot, okay?" His face turns red. "Other than that, you love birds will be fine."

"Oh god, kill me now." Asuna covered her face. Kirito just stutter.

"Come on, what kind of friend would I be if I didn't tease you guys? Just…" I pause. Then smile. "Just think of me as your big brother! The one who's always right!"

"Always right?" Mako rolls her eyes.

"Yeah! Doesn't matter what you say, I'm always right!"

"Right." Asuna shakes her head with a laugh.

"Alright guys. I think we're going to get a move on now. I'd like to take advantage of being the first out there." I'd really like to farm Fen'harel. Mako can make those potions and we'll keep them for ourselves.

"Alright." Asuna replied as she came up and embraced me. I was caught off guard. I wasn't expecting this at all. This was new. It took me a little bit to hug her back with a smile, though I was red in the face.

"Be careful. Both of you." She said.

"We will be." I assure her. We let go of the other and I walk up to Kirito.

"Watch you back out there okay? Her's too." We claps hands.

"I will." He states firmly.

We say goodbye to Oni too before we both head out to the third floor.

But I have a strange feeling. Like someone's watching me.

Maybe it's just me.


	9. Chapter 9

**Don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

 **"** **Did we really need to finish the guild quest? When are you ever going to make a guild?"**

"I don't know. Maybe? What's it matter? Besides, it's done. Who knows, it might come in handy one day."

Mako groans a little. She didn't like that we wasted our time with this guild quest. I don't see a problem with it since we get some decent exp. I think she's bothered by the fact that it took twice the amount of time since the only way to finish it is to have a party of at least five. Luckily for us we ran into a group of three that were also doing the same quest. We had to defeat a boss twice since each participant of the quest needed to defeat them. In total, around twenty hours. Hence the agitated Mako.

"Enough huffing and puffing. Like I said it's done. Now hop to it, we're almost at Fen'Harel's dungeon. Remember to stay on the path."

The forest here was different from the ones on the first and second floor. The entire third floor was one covered by ancient, massive trees. The main town was even built into the three behemoths. The area we were entering was just south of the Queen Spider's Cave, closer to the Dark Elf Base. The forest in the southern part of the map was different to the rest of the floor. Thick clouds of fog always rolled in, so much so that you couldn't see your own hand in front of you. The path was the only visible thing you could see. The one we were taking would take us to the lone dark elf boss we were looking for.

Even following the trail we weren't safe. The spider and tree type monsters liked trying to lure players off the trail. You'd get lost and likely mobbed by them afterwards. Elfs were also trouble too, but unlike the other monsters they merely observed, content to leave you alone unless you provoke them.

The dungeon Fen'Harel inhabited was actually the hollowed remains of a massive tree stump. In the center was a fire, the only light that illuminated the trunk. A chest filled with items was next to it, a cooking stand over the flame, a spider skewered on the stick. Sitting on the ground was a dark elf who was about a foot taller than myself, wearing light metal armor on his chest and arms, a dark green hooded cloak finishing the look. Two double bladed daggers were clearly visible on his person. He didn't move or make a sound, at least not until we reached the entrance.

"Leave humans. This is your only warning." His voice was surprisingly soft but his words were threatening. His words were new however. He never spoke during the beta.

"Get ready Mako." I said as we quickly as we both checked our hotkey to quickly make sure everything was in order. Once done we entered the hollowed trunk.

The area seemed to light up as the fire in the center grew, engulfing the spider and a three foot radius more. The dark elf silently stood and equipped his weapons. He slowly made his way towards us.

"I always warn you humans. But you refuse to listen." He spun his blades. "All of you are the same; violent creatures with no understanding of the world around you, always ignoring the consequences of your actions. If death will make you learn so be it." It wasn't a second later that he sped towards us at a speed that should be impossible.

He slammed into my shield with more force than I anticipated, forcing me back. He traveled with me, maneuvering one dagger behind my shield and yanking forwards, intent on leaving me reeling and vulnerable. Mako likely saw this as she attack immediately after, forcing the dark elf to cease and dodge her attack. He quickly made up for it however. As soon as her attack missed he struck, two quick strikes that landed on her arm and chest before falling back to the fire.

I charged first with Mako a few steps behind. A simple vertical slash was easily parried by Fen'Harel, but the shield bash made contact, though it was somewhat negated by slamming into his arm. Mako took advantage of the bosses current predicament as he reeled from the shield and attacked, her axe making full contact with Fen'Harel's chest, sending him flying where he landed next to the fire. He sprung to his feet a second later and speed to the right, to the edge of the area before heading straight for us. Mako moved behind me as I brought my shield to bare, ready to tank the attack. At the last moment he jumped, soaring above us and directly behind us. He doesn't land a hit and only meets the steel of my shield, dodging both Mako's and my own retaliation.

When Fen'Harel retreated, a shadow launched from his own body, looking just like a clone of himself. It charged us, slamming into Mako and sending her sliding into me, knocking us to the ground. He takes advantage of this, engaging us and trying to get the both of us in an attack. We roll, the blades nipping us as we jumped to our feet on his right and left, Mako attacking from his rear with my sword in the front. He couldn't dodge with no room to maneuver. Mako's axe struck his upper back while my sword struck just above his waist. Because of the way we hit, he flipped, but was sent backwards when another strike from the both of us made contact with his chest. When he landed we charged, landing a few attacks as he recovered before he retreated once more.

It stayed like that for the first half, these tactics being repeated for the most part with some variety in the mix. The shadows still throw us off since it's a new ability of his. He lands mostly glancing blows on us, with a few well placed strikes. Besides the shadows, we have little trouble predicting his attack patterns, protecting ourselves while landing blows on Fen'Harel.

It wasn't until his health reached fifty percent that things changed. The boss leaped back to the center of the area, next to the fire. He raised his hand above the roaring flames before forcing it down, the fire dying as soon as he made contact. The hollowed trunk darkened, the surrounding area becoming nearly pitch black. Fen'Harel disappeared along with the light silently. Mako moved behind me and we stood back to back in an attempt to protect our rear and sides. It was barely a second later that the dark elf struck, a shadow slamming into my shield, a dagger making it to the other side of my shield to try and rip it out of my grasp while another shadow went for Mako, one dagger stabbing her in the side as it also attempted to disarm her. We're both able to keep hold of our weapons but were slammed into the ground when the real Fen'Harel attacked from above, the blades digging into our shoulders. Before we could even fathom what had happened he vanished back into the darkness.

"Ah, damn it!" I cursed as we both got to our feet. I knew this part would get irritating and even more dangerous for us. When it came to this portion of the boss fight it was difficult to predict his attack pattern. At this point it was entirely random; he could send an army of shadows at us if he really wanted to, but I wasn't sure. The most we could do is react to each attack.

' _Think Alto, think.'_ Since the shadow attack was new it made the boss even more unpredictable. And the prior attack showed that he could get you at any angle.

Mako had made the same conclusion as I had. "Alto, we need to cut off his angles of attack."

"Any ideas?" I was still trying to think.

"I don't know. Maybe-duck!"

I dropped to my knees, Mako's axe passing over my head and slamming into the shadow before me, continuing to my left, catching a leaping Fen'Harel and sending him back into the darkness.

"The tree!" She shouted. "We put our backs to the tree!"

Mako, you smart girl.

We didn't exchange another word as we sped to the edge of the area, slamming our backs rather hard on the hollowed tree bark. With this it would be much harder for Fen'Harel to attack us. He could only attack us from the front or sides. We still had to worry about the shadows though.

Mako glanced at me. I raised my hand to point to my ears, than made a circle in the air. She nodded back. The only way we could even begin to guess when Fen'Harel would attack would be through sound.

We waited, silence greeting us as we leveled our weapons. We were both a little twitchy hearing only the slightest of sounds in the darkened hollow. A shadow charged, with the two of us just able to dodge the thing.

And than we heard boots scrape against dirt.

I launched my shield at I perceived he would be. It flew into the darkness and a second later a loud noise came from the darkness. Mako and I immediately charge into the direction I sent my shield at, finding the boss reeling from the sudden turn around. Mako makes contact first, spinning three times with her axe out, striking Fen'Harel all three times. I follow up with a charge, my sword slicing up and down his chest before entering his abdomen. I tore it out and followed with a spin that slammed my shield into him, forcing the dark elf to the ground. Mako follows this by jumping to him, axe raised above her head before she brought it down on his chest, where his heart would be. He gives a pained cry before he's again sent flying, Mako finishing with another strike that mimicked a golf move.

"Nice one!" I call out as he quickly put our backs to the hollow again. If we could keep up this level of damage they could end the fight in as little as five more turns. Less if we landed even more.

"Ah!" Fen'Harel cried out. "Why!? Why do you insist on fighting me!? **WHY!?"**

"Son of a bitch!" Was my cry as a shadow slammed onto my head, forcing me forward. Another slammed into my back, than from my left before the real boss came at my right. I was too slow and he dug both daggers into my side.

I cried out as my health reached the red. I needed him to back off now. I didn't do anything fancy, a simple sword swing, anything to get him to retreat. It did just that and before I knew it Mako was right next to me, swinging at Fen'Harel. The attack nicked him but he was spooked and once again moved into the darkness. Mako and I both retreat quickly to our original spot and I use my hotkey to use a potion.

"He's getting more aggressive." Mako stated. I can only nod. Fen'Harel never attacked like this in the beta, so it's been added.

As the battle continued we kept getting hits here and there. Nothing as amazing as the first yet. But now we're getting more insight on how his tactics changed. He was using the shadows much less, attacking more himself, and he was angry. You could tell by the power of the attacks; the rage and hate that slammed into my shield, stabbed into my person. But that also meant he was getting reckless. He was still dangerous, was still skillful, but he was starting to ditch technique, wasn't dodging as much, willing to take hits he couldn't afford. It was wearing down on him, and with each lost portion of health he got angrier and, in turn, became even more reckless.

He finally snapped after his tenth attack.

"Enough of this!" The dark elf practically screamed.

"Down!" I yell as we duck just in time for the boss to fly at us, above and into the wall, stunning himself.

Mako was the first to react, slamming her weapon into Fen'Harel, forcing him back into the wall.

"Keep him pinned!" I shout at her as I launch my own flurry of attacks on the staggered boss, finishing with a shield bash and throwing him against the wall once more.

Mako took advantage of the staggering boss, once more slamming her axe into him, aiming for his head for maximum damage. When the last of her five hit combo landed, her axe embedded itself into Fen'Harel's neck.

His head dropped to the ground, followed shortly by the rest of his decapitated body.

We both blinked at Fen'Harel, having not expected the attack to do such a thing to him. A moment later his head and the rest of his body shatter.

The light returns, forcing the darkness to retreat, and the ' _Congratulations!'_ box pops up before us.

"And there we go. Four Elfroot. We mix this with a few herbs in the area, Athelas, and we have two high-grade potions that's not even available yet." I say.

"Good." She accepts the reward before turning to me. "Do you want to farm? Get more and such?"

I shrug. "Sure. It should be easier to fight him now that we know all his abilities. We can just farm until he stops showing. We can keep most and sell the rest of the potions. It's likely to make us some good money." People would pay big for something like this. And we need as much money as possible. Some would likely blow all their money on these items, and I wasn't going to stop them. That would be their decision.

She nods, smiling slightly. "Alright. How do we get Fen'Harel to respawn?"

I motion for her to follow me.

* * *

"And that takes care of that." I say as I equip my new armored gloves.

It's beer a few days since the multiple battles against Fen'Harel. We farmed him a total of eight times before he stopped spawning, equaling sixteen high grade potions. We sold six for some very good money, enough that we won't have to worry about it for a little while, but we still need to make more. During that time we completed the Elf War campaign quest, with a little hitch. Before starting said quest, I ran into Kirito, Asuna, and the dark elf Kizmel, the one from the quest, still living. Once I found out that you could save her, and likely the other elf, Mako and I attempted to do the same. We succeeded, and proceeded with the quests with her in our side. It was interesting. Her interactions with us were different that I had imagined. It's very likely that she's an AI. She wouldn't respond or act the way she did if she wasn't. The fact that she bathed, ate, slept, and even leveled up are evidence enough. We had to let her go and finish the quest. We had just exited the dark elf camp after receiving a reward and some info on the third floor boss.

"It's late. Should we stay the night? Continue tomorrow?" I ask my companion.

"I'd like to go to the forest elf camp and see what we can loot. We couldn't do that the last time we were there." She was right. The last time we were there we fought our way to retrieve the quest item before high-tailing it out of there. If we were careful, we could loot the camp quietly, or just go in swords and axes swinging. Maybe that way since we'd get the exp and more items to boot.

"Alright. Are you stocked up on potions? We might have to fight our way into the camp."

"What other way is there?" She asked with some humor. "And yes. I have sixteen normal potions and the five high grade that we split."

"That let's get to it."

It takes longer than before since the fog gets heavier at night. Once we cleared that though we tried to make up for it. We didn't arrive until around one in the morning.

The forest elf camp was located on top of a hill overlooking the river. There was only one entrance into the camp and it was always guarded. The dried wood walls would crack a splinter, alerting the guards. The only way you could make it through would be through the river if you wanted to do it quietly.

Fortunately Mako and I weren't in the quiet mood.

We started circling west of the camp, trying to find a way to with the least amount of guards initially. It took us to the edge of the river and to a shallow hill that was an easy way down a twenty foot cliff. The east side wouldn't be much different. I was debating if we should take the sneaky way in and surprise them that way when I heard something.

I could hear steel clashing with steel, just barely.

I looked down the hill and could most see sparks.

Someone was fighting something down here.

I turn to Mako and she can hear it too. She nods to me while we arm ourselves. We quickly make our way down the hill and silently move closer in.

I can see two people, players by the green cursor above their heads. One was a man I didn't recognize. He had scale mail all over his person. His gloves and boots were made of the stuff. The most distinguishing part was the mail coif. He wielded a one-handed axe in one hand and a small round shield.

And before him was…

Kirito.

Lying on the ground, with his health just above fifty percent.

Only one thought ran through my mind.

Kirito's going to die.

I had to stop this.

I brought my sword up, leveled and held back enough for the hilt to touch my neck, leaned back slightly with my right foot forward. Than I launched myself forward, covering the twenty feet between us in a second.

The man hadn't even known I was there. He had his back to me, so all he could do was cry out in agony as my sword entered his back and exited out his chest, where his heart would be. Soon after I pulled my sword out of him, doing a full 360 before the sword went to his neck. He didn't lose his head like Fen'Harel had, but it forced his body down to the ground hard. Hard enough that he shattered.

I ignored the box before me, sheathing my sword and jogging to Kirito's side.

"Kirito, are you okay?" I asked as I lifted him from his position to sit against a rock. I can see the red marks the axe wielder gave him on his stomach and chest. Besides that he's in one piece. He doesn't look good though. He'd staring at me in shock.

"You...you just-"

I knew where this was going.

"I killed him because he was going to kill you. I wasn't going to let that happen." I state firmly. Mako makes it to us and brings out a potion and helps Kirito take it. When his health starts rising I let out a sigh of relief. He was in the clear.

"Kirito, who the hell was that? Why were they fighting you?" Mako's eyes frow.

Kirito takes a moment to respond, getting the feeling back into his arms and legs. Once he's confident he stands, stretching slightly.

"His name was Morte. He was part of Lind's group. A beta tester like you and me. He chanalged me to a duel." He started.

"A duel?" So did I just…

"He was trying to kill me using the dueling system so he wouldn't get the orange cursor."

I calm instantly. My instincts were right. But that doesn't explain…

"Kirito, where are Asuna and Kizmel?"

His eyes widen slightly before he turns his head, looking away from me and Mako and at the ground.

"They're...not here."

"And why is that?" I narrow my eyes.

"Because…" He pauses. "I didn't want them to kill the forest elves."

"Why?" You can hear the growl in my voice now.

He doesn't respond.

So I smack the back of his head.

"Ow!" He rubs it.

"You. Are. An. Idiot. A damn idiot. The biggest damn idiot in the entirety of SAO. You left them at the camp because you don't want to kill fictional characters? So what you're telling me is that the forest elfs, the AI, the thing that doesn't have a life outside of this game, it's more important than your life? Is that what you're trying to tell me?" I hiss. He only continues rubbing his head and doesn't answer, likely knowing that I wouldn't like it.

"So they don't know you're here?" Mako asks Kirito. He gives her a nod. "So how would have they reacted if Morte had killed you?"

This seemed to catch him off guard, likely because it never crossed his mind, too occupied with the forest elfs safety. He opens his mouth but immediately closes it before trying again, ending it with a defeated sigh.

"Here's what's going to happen Kirito. You'll wait here. Mako and I will clear out the camp. Once that's done, you'll get your quest item, and all three of us will go back to the dark elf camp and you can explain to both of them what happened. Understood?" I poke his chest.

"Yes."

"Good." I turn to Mako, motioning to the camp. "Let's get going."

Ten minutes of fighting later we loot the place, with Kirito taking the quest item. Another hour and we reach the dark elf camp, and Kirito has a conversation with Kizmel and a very irritated Asuna.

' _Come on Kirito.'_ I thought as I watched the boy slowly shrink from the rapier user. Kizmel doesn't say anything but her eyes make it clear that she doesn't appreciate what he did.

Hopefully this stops his little faze.

Hopefully.


End file.
